A Second Chance
by Sunflowa
Summary: It's seventh year the war is raging Harry is still having visions and Ron has a second chance to ask Hermione to the Ball but does he? Or will something stop him from telling her how he really feels?
1. A Second Chance

Chapter 1 – A Second Chance

It was late one Saturday evening and all the Gryffindors had already gone up to bed – all except one. He sat alone beside the fire in the Gryffindor common room, running his fingers through his flame-red hair, reflecting on everything that had happened to bring him to this exact point in time. Yes, suddenly he could see it so clearly in his mind – that exact moment when everything had changed. It was so vivid – he sighed as he remembered exactly how he had felt that night…

It was the night of the Yule Ball, back in fourth year. Ron remembered how beautiful Hermione had looked – she was breathtaking. And even now he could feel how intensely jealous he had felt that night, seeing her with Viktor Krum. At the time he'd told himself he wasn't jealous – it was all too confusing to comprehend – but he would never forget the row they had had that night. It all came flooding back to him now. She was furious and was screaming at him with an intense passion. He'd retaliated and things had escalated from there. And then, she'd said what he hadn't quite understood back then – She wanted him to take her to the ball, and if there ever was another ball, that he should ask her first. It was at that point that he'd started to look at her differently.

And as time had gone by, he'd started to notice little things about her that he'd never really seen before – like how her eyes sparkled every time she relayed some story about an ancient wizard she'd read about in the library, or how a cute little dimple would form around her lips when she laughed at one of his jokes. He would catch himself trying to impress her during his Quidditch games, much to Harry's annoyance, who often accused him of 'showing off and not concentrating on the game'. He couldn't help himself though – She had this effect on him – his pulse started racing whenever she entered a room; his heart would hammer incessantly against his chest every time she smiled and he felt hot under the collar whenever they were alone together.

And although he'd finally become aware of his feelings, things between them had remained the same – they were just friends - because there had been so much going on during fifth year, they'd hardly had time to consider anything apart from the war and the Prophecy. And then, sixth year happened and it didn't seem like he'd ever get the chance to tell her how he felt.

Sixth year had been difficult – although they were at school, it all seemed pretty pointless. Who could concentrate on studying for the NEWTS when the war was raging in full force? Voldermort and the Death Eaters were growing stronger and the Order was doing everything in their power to stop them. Dumbledore had instructed Harry and his friends to stay at Hogwarts, despite Harry's pleas. Harry had not coped well with Sirius's death and all he wanted to do was fight – but Dumbledore was adamant – the time wasn't right. He had assured Harry that when the time came for him to fight Voldermort, he would know. But in the meantime, they were to stay at Hogwarts, learning as much as they could for when they _were_ needed.

It was during sixth year that he had realised the extent of his feelings for Hermione. They had been staying at the Burrow over the summer – Harry had grudgingly agreed to stay on at the Dursleys, now knowing that it was the safest place for him when he wasn't at Hogwarts – when they were attacked. It had happened so fast, no-one had seen it coming. It was a beautiful day and he and Hermione had been sitting outside, enjoying a delightful picnic under the willow tree – in fact, he was almost certain, had they not been interrupted, that the afternoon might've progressed into something more meaningful. The butterbeer always had a way of making him feel merry – she had just placed her hand on his and said "Ron" when a blood-curdling scream jolted them apart. A look of terror came across Ron's face as he realised who it was that had screamed - "Ginny!" They both jumped up and sprinted inside, Ron desperately wondering where he'd left his wand. As they came running inside, they saw Mrs Weasley crumpled in one corner and Ginny being held around the neck by a Death Eater. There were just two of them but none of the Weasleys had been prepared for the attack – In fact, no-one was home except for Ron, Hermione, Mrs Weasley and Ginny. Hermione drew her wand immediately "Let her go!" she yelled, as Ron ran over to Mrs Weasley "Mum – are you okay?" Mrs Weasley just nodded, but gestured towards Ginny.

Ron watched as Hermione walked towards the Death Eaters fearlessly – "Let her go right now or I'll…" she threatened. Ron couldn't help admiring her just then - she was so brave! Then a sudden wave of fear washed over him as he realised how much danger she was in.

"Or you'll what? You're just a filthy Mudblood, Granger!"

Ron knew that voice – it was Draco Malfoy. Malfoy pulled his hood down to reveal his smirk.

Ron frantically began searching for something to distract them. He had to do something! It reminded him briefly of the time he and Harry had tried to rescue Hermione from the mountain troll – Harry had wound up swinging from the troll's grubby paws and it was up to Ron to save the day – if only this situation required a simple _"Wingardium Leviosa"_!

"Malfoy – I should've known!" exclaimed Hermione "Bored, were you? Thought you'd get dressed up in daddy's robes and come and call us names for a bit of fun?"

Malfoy was not drawn in by her taunts "Actually, I've quite taken to Weasley's little sister over here – What do you say Weasley – reckon I can have a bit of fun with her?"

Ron strode forward "You leave her alone Malfoy!"

Ginny was trying to wriggle free but Malfoy held her firm "Come on Ginny, I could make it worth your while" he said, and made as if he was going to kiss her.

Ron knew they needed some sort of distraction so that Hermione could work her magic – and then he realised – he could _be_ the distraction. He suddenly bolted across the room – he knew Malfoy would try to curse him – and while he did, Hermione didn't waste any time "Accio Ginny!" she recited and Ginny came flying towards her. The other Death Eater, probably Crabbe or Goyle judging by their size, sent a spell straight at Hermione, completely knocking her off her feet. Malfoy was furious that he'd been tricked so easily "C'mon Goyle – let's go – let's not waste our energy on the Weasleys – we have more important people to kill…" he said as they quickly made for the front door.

"Hermione!" Ginny yelled "Mum, Ron, come quick – she's not breathing!"

Ron had felt his heart stop the moment Ginny had said those words – he'd realised right then how much he loved Hermione – he couldn't live without her!

"Hermione!" he yelled "please wake up!" he was bent over her and had taken her hand in his.

Mrs Weasley got out her wand "Stand back Dears". Ron and Ginny looked up at their mother, uncertain but they did not move.

"_Levitas Brecardium Deliruis_" Mrs Weasley said, pointing her wand at Hermione.

Hermione awoke with a start. "Ron" she said, sitting up "Where am I? What happened?" she questioned inquisitively. Ron was so relieved he wrapped her up in a bear hug and would not let her go for several minutes "Hermione" he said softly "I thought you were…"

"I'm fine Ron" she had said, and then everything had just returned to normal.

That was almost a year ago now. At the beginning of their seventh and final year at Hogwarts, Harry had told Ron he wanted to ask Ginny out. Ron had been fine with it initially – his sister deserved someone of Harry's character – but they had been going out for several months now and they were starting to irritate him. They were so sickeningly in love, Ron couldn't bear to be around them anymore. All he could think about was Hermione, and how they weren't together. If he'd thought she was beautiful before, it was nothing to how he felt now – it was like she suddenly blossomed in seventh year – her hair had grown long and become more manageable – it fell gracefully over her shoulders in waves, and Ron just wanted to reach out and run his fingers through it. She'd grown into an amazing young woman, right before his very eyes, and he was tired of watching all the boys flirting with her every chance they got.

They had gone down to Hogsmeade that day – Harry, Ginny, him and Hermione – and were sitting in the Three Broomsticks, enjoying their favourite beverage, Butterbeer, when it had happened. Something that Ron had been expecting ever since fourth year, but had forgotten about as time went by, when it never happened. And now, suddenly, here it was again – staring him in the face - and he was totally unprepared for it…

"Hermione!" it was Parvati Patil. She came rushing over to their table. "Guess what? I've just heard – they're going to announce it tonight!"

"What Parvati? Calm down…"

"There's going to be a Yule Ball!" she squealed "Straight after exams – sort of like a farewell thing for the seventh years…"

Harry and Ginny grinned at each other "Well, I guess I know who I'm taking this time!" Harry declared.

Ron felt sick. He shot Hermione an anxious look but she was avoiding his eye contact. She became engrossed in conversation with Parvati until Parvati suddenly put Ron on the spot again "So Ron, would you like me to ask Padma for you again?"

"I don't think she'd go with me even if I bribed her" he grinned "Not after the last time!"

They laughed but he blushed when he found Hermione staring at him and he looked down into his Butterbeer, as Hermione's words from that night came rushing back to haunt him. _You know what the solution is – next time there's a Ball – ask me first – and not as a last resort!_

The four of them had spent the rest of the day avoiding the subject of the Ball – Harry and Ginny both knew what had happened last time and did not want to prompt any awkward conversations while they were present – so their conversation was steered towards the usual topics – Quidditch, homework, the Order and other school friends.

They had come back to the common room, and Hermione had hastily run off with Ginny, no doubt to talk about the Ball, while Harry had tried to broach the subject with Ron.

"Harry – don't look at me like that - we both know what you're thinking!" Ron couldn't take the underlying tension anymore – no-one had said anything, but everyone was thinking along the same lines.

"Well – what do you expect, after what happened last time? I walked in on you two having a huge fight about it!"

"I know – and now everyone's expecting me to ask her!"

"Everyone?"

"You, Her, Ginny - Everyone"

"Look Mate, I thought you wanted to go to the Ball with Hermione? I mean, it's hardly a secret that you like her – Ginny and I have known for ages!"

"Yes, but _she_ doesn't know how I feel about her! And I didn't want to ask her like this, with all this expectation and pressure – I don't want her to think I'm asking her because I have to, because of what happened three years ago"

"Well, just a heads up – I overheard Seamus and Dean talking on the way back from Hogsmeade – Seamus is planning to ask her in the morning"

"Great! More pressure – thanks Harry" Ron said sarcastically.

And that had been hours ago. And now, here he sat. Turning it over and over in his mind. Here it was - the perfect opportunity to finally tell her how amazing she was – to finally tell her how much his heart ached to be with her – to love her, to look after her, to kiss her softly… just as he found himself starting to fantasise about her delicious lips, he was brought back to reality as someone came down into the common room.

Somehow, he knew it would be her. She was the only one who ever came to find him when he stayed up late and sat by the fire – she just knew somehow when he was there – it was like an instinct.

"Hey, what are you still doing up?" Hermione asked, coming over in her pajamas, and snuggling up next to him. It was something they did often – she would snuggle up next to him and they would talk for hours. It was the only time he didn't feel uncomfortable around her – something about it was just so familiar – he felt like he could tell her anything when she was snuggled up in his arms like that.

"I was just thinking" he said "remembering…"

"Mmm…" she said knowingly "about the Ball?"

"Well yeah – it's been a long time since the last one, but the thought of another Ball has just brought back all these memories" he said

"I know what you mean" she said "I've been thinking too"

"Yeah?"

"Yeah" she paused, wondering how to approach what she wanted to say next... "Listen Ron – we both know what I said to you after the last Yule Ball…"

"How could I forget…" he grinned "that's the biggest fight we've ever had…"

Hermione blushed slightly and quickly continued -

"Well, a lot has happened since then – we've become really close – and, well, I just don't want you to ask me to _this_ Ball because you feel like you have to, because of what I said when I was fourteen years old…"

_This was it – this was his second chance_ _– Don't screw it up!_ He thought. _It was now or never._

"Hermione – I want to go to the Ball with you…" the words tumbled out - but once they had, he couldn't believe how simple they seemed – why had it taken him so long to say something so simple?

She lifted her head and looked up at him in disbelief "Ron – are you sure? It's not coz you…"

"Hermione" he interrupted her, looking deeply into her eyes "I want _you_ to go to the Ball with _me_" he emphasised, grinning at her. "So… will you?"

She smiled. "Okay" she said casually and snuggled back into his shoulder. He grinned. He knew her better than that – she wasn't ever casual about anything! He could feel the excitement rising inside his chest – she'd said yes! He asked and she said yes!

"C'mon" she said eventually "I think we better go to bed"

"Right" he grinned "yours or mine?"

Hermione blushed crimson "Very funny, Ronald Weasley! I'm going to _my_ bed and you can go to _yours_…" she said and quickly headed for her dormitory. Ron couldn't resist beaming as he watched her leave – He loved making her blush like that! Suddenly he realised how tired he was - it had been a long day – but who could sleep! Hermione had said yes – She was going to the Ball with him! He finally had a second chance to show her how much he loved her – and he wasn't going to screw it up – he had to make sure it was perfect.


	2. Blushing at Breakfast

Chapter 2 - Blushing at Breakfast

Harry could not help grinning as he watched Ron and Hermione at breakfast that morning. Ron was unusually chipper for someone who'd been scowling into his cereal for the past year now. And Hermione had come waltzing over and said "Good Morning!" in a rather cheerful tone, and had started humming merrily to herself. Harry eyed them curiously but neither of them acknowledged that anything peculiar was going on. By the time Ginny joined the table, Seamus and Neville had also begun to notice the odd behaviour and had noticeably started whispering among themselves. Harry could not contain his amusement any longer.

"What is _with_ you two this morning?" he asked eventually, as Ginny sat down beside him, looking confused.

Ron grinned "Just enjoying my breakfast Mate"

"Yeah, right" said Harry sarcastically "And since when do Cornflakes put a smile like _that_ on your face?" he pointed at Ron, who was now desperately trying to hide the grin that was plastered all over his face. Hermione looked up at him then and he just couldn't control it – he could feel his face getting warm, and he was pretty sure by now it had turned a certain shade of pink.

Suddenly Hermione felt a soft tap on her shoulder.

"Hermione?" It was Seamus.

"Oh - Hi Seamus" she greeted happily

"Can we talk, Hermione?" he asked nervously

"Uh, sure" she answered and pointed towards the seat next to her "sit down"

"Uh, I meant alone" he said, looking awkwardly from Ron to Harry and then down to his feet.

Suddenly a look of horror spread across Ron's face as he remembered what Harry had said the night before – Seamus was going to ask Hermione to the Ball!

"Uh Sure" Hermione said uncertainly, as she got up from the table and started walking away with Seamus.

Ron's mind was suddenly filled with all kinds of distressing thoughts_. What was she going to say? Surely she'd say no straight away? Or what if she actually wants to go with Seamus?_ This thought had not occurred to him before and it started to plague him. _What if she actually likes someone else? What if going to the Ball with him didn't mean anything other than friendship to her?_ His mind was racing with these unstoppable thoughts when Harry's voice suddenly broke through –

"Ron?"

"Yeah?" he replied, not taking his eyes off Hermione.

"Are you going to tell us what's going on?" Harry and Ginny looked amused.

He peeled his eyes away long enough to say "What do you mean?"

Harry continued "Well, when I left you last night, you were completely stressed out about the Ball. But then this morning, you and Hermione both pitch up at breakfast looking like the kittens that stole the cream! And _now_, she's over there with Seamus and you can't keep your eyes off her! Are we missing something?" He grinned suggestively

"Uh" Ron hesitated, still glancing over at Hermione. He couldn't tell from her expression how the conversation was going. _Just tell him already!_ He thought furiously - _Tell him you're going with me!_

Suddenly, Seamus turned and left the Great Hall and Hermione came strolling back to their table. Harry, Ron and Ginny were all staring at her expectantly.

"He asked me to the Ball" she said, blushing as she caught Ron's eyes. She sat down hastily and continued eating her porridge, desperately trying to avoid his stare. But Ron could not take the suspense any more –

"_And?_" he questioned eagerly.

She looked at him, puzzled. "What do you mean _AND _Ron Weasley? You know I already have a date for the Ball!"

Harry and Ginny exchanged curious looks.

Ron looked relieved "Yeah _I_ know that, but I thought maybe _you _might forget…"

"Ron, I would never forget…" she smiled at him and Ron could feel his face getting hot again.

"No Way!" Ginny exclaimed "Hermione, why didn't you tell me you and Ron…?"

"I didn't really have time" she replied

"So you two _were_ up late last night…" Harry commented suggestively, beaming at them.

Ron grinned, but Hermione quickly changed the subject.

"So are you lot coming to join me in the library today?" she inquired

Harry groaned "Hermione, it's Sunday!"

"Yes, but we still have an exam tomorrow!" she protested "And the more studying we get done the better…"

"But we already know it all!" Ron joined in "We've been studying Herbology for weeks already – thanks to you!"

"Yes, besides, we were thinking about going down to the lake for a picnic later…" Harry continued

"C'mon Hermione" Ginny persuaded "It's such a beautiful day! And we can talk about the Ball and stuff – forget exams for now!"

But Hermione was adamant "Well, _I_ at least need to get a few more hours in before tomorrow"

"Okay, fine" said Ron, knowing it was a pointless argument "But meet us later, Okay? Down by the lake? You can't study all day!"

"Alright" she gave in, realising she was heavily out-numbered "I'll see you later" she said and quickly headed towards the library.

Harry grinned at Ron "So you actually asked her!"

"Yeah" Ron grinned stupidly "Long story – but basically - I asked and she said yes!"

"Well – we're impressed" Ginny commented

"Yeah, well done Mate" Harry said, giving Ron a pat on the back "Now – let's go organise this picnic…" he said, getting up and leading Ginny out of the hall, while Ron just sat there, grinning into his Cornflakes.


	3. The Vision

Chapter 3 - The Vision

It really was the perfect afternoon for a picnic – it was one of those rare Winter days when the sun came out to warm everything it came into contact with, creating a lethargic atmosphere around the school, which was not uncommon on Sundays. There was not a breath of wind. The sunlight glinted on the still surface of the lake as Ginny helped the boys straighten out the picnic blanket.

"Wow" she said, as she sat down and started unpacking the picnic basket "it's a great day for a picnic"

"Yeah" agreed Harry as he sat down next to her "this sunshine is incredible"

Ron couldn't help wondering when Hermione might pitch up – he wanted to share this gorgeous day with her – and the last thing he felt like was spending another afternoon with Harry and Ginny making eyes at each other! His best friend and his sister – he loved them – but he couldn't help feeling like a third wheel around them now. Well, he wasn't going to let it ruin a perfectly good picnic!

"Move over, Harry" he said determinedly

Harry threw Ron a dirty look but shifted over anyway so that he was still next to Ginny but not as close - Ron was on the other side of her. Ginny was getting used to this tension – Ron tended to get moody around her and Harry these days and Harry usually ended up making some comment. She quickly poured them each some Butterbeer – that always put them in a good mood.

It definitely seemed to do the trick – Ron's mood lifted instantly. He lay back on the blanket and watched the clouds roll by.

"So I guess you two are going to the Ball together?" he said finally "as if I need to ask!"

Harry grinned "Was that a question?"

"Well, you are, aren't you?"

"Right – we are" Harry winked at Ginny "Now, are you going to tell us how this whole you-asking-Hermione-to-the-Ball-thing came about?"

"No" said Ron smugly "That's between me and Hermione"

"Okay" said Harry "Well, either you can tell me now, or Hermione will tell Ginny later, and Ginny will just end up telling me anyway!"

Ron sighed mockingly "Is nothing sacred anymore? Must every little detail go through the Harry-Ginny hotline?"

Ginny shrugged.

"There's nothing to tell - honestly!" he said laughing "She just came to sit by the fire last night, and we started talking…"

"Ahuh" Harry nudged Ginny teasingly.

"Listen Ginny" Ron said, ignoring Harry "I need your help – I want the night of the Ball to be perfect…"

"No problem" she grinned "what do you need help with?"

"Everything!" he smiled awkwardly "I wasn't exactly the best date the last time we had a Ball"

Harry grinned at this understatement.

"You might want to start with a few dancing lessons" he suggested, remembering Padma's comments "Girls like to dance"

"Oh do they Mr Potter?" Ginny teased "Well, let's see your moves then…"

"Me? Uh No…" said Harry firmly

"Yeah, c'mon Mate" said Ron, jumping on the bandwagon "you've been ragging on me all day. So let's see the Great Harry Potter in action then…"

Harry mumbled something under his breath.

"Sorry, what was that Mate?" Ron persisted

"I can't dance" Harry said eventually

Ginny laughed "So I guess I'll be teaching you both to dance then!"

"It looks that way!" Ron chuckled "Say Ginny, where'd _you_ learn to dance?"

"Ron – I've got tons of brothers"

"So, how on earth would that help you? I mean, I'm your brother" he looked confused

"Well, I asked Charlie to teach me back in fifth, and then when the twins learnt, I asked them to give me some lessons as well"

"What?" grinned Ron "The twins can dance!"

"Yeah" said Ginny "but I don't think they like to advertise it – undermines their whole joker reputation"

"Oh right - so where did all our brothers learn to dance then? I don't recall seeing Charlie waltzing around the Burrow…"

"From the Pro's of course! Mum and Dad" Ginny beamed

"Of course!" mimicked Ron "Hey Mate, you've been kinda quiet" he said in Harry's direction "did we damage your fragile ego earlier?" he asked mockingly

"Shut up Ron" Harry chuckled "you can't dance either! And Hermione's going to expect you to sweep her off her feet"

"Yeah, yeah – hey, speaking of Hermione, wasn't she supposed to be here by now? It's almost three already!" Ron looked over at Ginny.

"Yeah you're right" agreed Harry "she can't possibly still be…OUCH!" Harry suddenly screamed out in pain and reached up and touched his scar. Ron and Ginny sat up and stared at Harry.

"Harry! What is it?" Ginny demanded

"I don't know" he said "but something's wrong! My scar…hurting like crazy!" Harry could barely get the words out – he clasped both his hands over his forehead as the pain blasted through him - "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!"

Ginny and Ron were sick with worry.

"What's happening?" Ginny cried frantically at Ron. Harry was thrashing about now – it was almost like he was having a seizure.

"Do something!" she wailed

"What?" Ron questioned, trying to shake Harry out of it. But there was nothing they could do. Harry just kept on trembling.

"We can't just sit here – see if you can find Dumbledore or Professor McGonagall" said Ron anxiously "I'll stay here with Harry – but be quick, okay?"

Ginny saw the concern in Ron's eyes and realised there wasn't any time to argue – She quickly nodded and ran off to Dumbledore's office.

_Hermione, where are you?_ Ron thought frantically

"Harry – can you hear me?" Ron persisted "Harry?"

Ron took out his wand – he wasn't sure what, but he had to do _something_… Suddenly he remembered – his mom had once taught him a useful Waking spell to get the twins out of bed on Saturday mornings – _How did it start again?_ he asked himself. _Ah, yes! That was it…_ he cleared his throat and was about to begin the incantation when he heard something faint coming from the blanket -

"Ron" Harry mumbled weakly, coming out of the seizure

"Harry!" Ron exclaimed, stunned "Mate, are you okay?"

Harry slowly sat up, as the strength returned to his body. Ron saw the terror in his eyes.

"What is it?" he asked anxiously, not wanting to know the answer "Is everyone okay? The Order? Mum? Dad?"

Harry shook his head, not sure how to tell Ron what he had seen "Ron – I had a vision. I don't know how to say this but – Hermione – she's gone…"

Ron eyes grew wide at this statement "What do you mean she's _gone_?" he asked desperately

"Well, I don't know how accurate my vision was but somehow I just know – Hermione's definitely gone. I saw her – she was trapped alone in a room somewhere – and then I heard a voice – _his _voice" Harry said anxiously "I couldn't hear his words, but I could see the fear in Hermione's eyes…"

Ron started to panic "Wait, Harry, are you… are you saying that… _V-Voldermort_ has her?" he looked at Harry fearfully and became silent as the shocking reality hit him - it was as if everything was happening in slow motion. Suddenly, it seemed like hours since she'd been smiling at him over breakfast – he couldn't believe he'd been up all night worrying about something stupid like how to ask her to the Ball! – The Ball seemed so far away now - all he wanted was to see Hermione's face again – to tell her how he felt about her – to hold her in his arms, never letting go – what if he never got the chance?

"Look" said Harry "I've learnt not to jump to conclusions – before we do anything, we need to get in touch with The Order and find out what's going on"

Ron struggled to find his voice – "B-But she could be in danger! She needs us Harry - I won't let anything happen to her!" he said emphatically

"Yes, but we need to use our heads here Ron – I won't let more people die because of my foolishness!" Harry looked down at his feet, ashamed at the thought of how he'd reacted the last time he'd been faced with a crisis – he'd jumped into action without knowing all the facts and Sirius had died as a result. No, he would not let that happen again!

"But Harry… How? How could this possibly happen?" Ron questioned furiously "Voldemort would never come here…"

"He must've found a way!" Harry thought out loud.

"But what about Dumbledore? He'd never let…"

"I don't know!" Harry interrupted "But something very strange is happening. Wait, I know…" he said as he pulled out the Marauders Map "Let's see where Dumbledore is right now"

He unfolded the map and tapped it with his wand.

"Ahuh! Thought so!" Harry said, as he scanned the map "Dumbledore's not here!"

"Harry - Look!" Ron exclaimed suddenly, pointing to a miniscule figure on the map "Hermione!"

Harry could not believe his eyes – Dumbledore had disappeared but according to the map, Hermione was still in the library!

"It can't be!" Harry exclaimed "I can't explain it but everything inside me says she's gone!"

"Well, let's not wait around here Mate! Let's go see if she's really there!" Ron said excitedly. His heart had leapt the moment he'd spotted her miniature figure.

Harry still look puzzled "I don't like this Ron – something doesn't feel right…"

"Well, it can't hurt to go find Hermione" Ron said "and then she can help us figure this all out"

Harry shrugged and gave in to Ron's persuasion – there was just no explaining it – it had felt so real!

Just then Ginny came running up and threw her arms around Harry. Tears were streaming down her face.

"Oh Harry" she cried "You're okay! I was so worried! When I couldn't find Dumbledore…"

He held her tight in his embrace "I'm fine" he consoled "It's not really me you should be worried about…"

She pulled away to look at him "What's going on? What did you see?"

"I had a vision, about Hermione – I think she's in danger" he said hesitantly, as he glanced over at Ron.

"C'mon, I'll explain on the way to the library" he said, taking her hand and leading her up to the castle.


	4. Sleeping

**Chapter 4 – Sleeping **

When Harry, Ron and Ginny finally found Hermione in the library, it became apparent why she hadn't met them earlier – she had fallen asleep! Her head was resting peacefully on her arms, which were now folded over the massive book she had been reading. For a moment, they all forgot the urgency of their visit and Ron was so relieved to see her lying there, he couldn't help chuckling at the amusing sight.

"She finally found one that bores her!" he said grinning as he walked closer to where she was sitting.

"Hermione" he said gently, touching her shoulder "Hermione, wake up!"

She stirred and mumbled something.

"Hermione!" Ron said again, trying not to yell too loudly – he didn't want to alert the librarian. He shook her gently.

"Ron" she said sleepily, as she opened her eyes. She suddenly became aware of all three of them staring at her "what's going on?"

Ron was too overwhelmed to speak – he simply enveloped her in a gigantic hug and refused to let her go until finally she pulled free and looked up at him, a questioning look plastered all over her face.

"Ron – what the…" she said

"I'm just so glad you're here!" he said, smiling at her

"In the library?" she looked even more puzzled

"No – here, at Hogwarts" he continued smiling at her

Hermione looked at Harry and raised her eyebrows, hoping he could clarify Ron's strange behaviour.

"Hermione – I had a vision" he said quickly "about you"

"A vision? Like your dreams?" she asked curiously

"Yes – but this was different to a dream. I have this feeling that it really happened, or is going to happen" he said "the only weird part is that, well, you're still here"

He sat down at the table and continued "in my vision, I saw you…" he hesitated "…with Voldermort. He had you locked up somewhere. And when the vision was over, I just had this intense feeling that you were gone"

"That is strange Harry" Hermione looked thoughtful for a second "And you still feel that way? Even though I'm sitting here in front of you?" she inquired

"Well, no actually" Harry said, astonished "now that you mention it, the feeling's gone!"

"This is really weird" Hermione said apprehensively "I don't like it at all!"

"Me either!" said Harry "I swear Hermione, I honestly thought you were gone – it felt so real…"

"Well, just be glad she isn't!" Ron said happily "All that worrying for nothing!"

"I don't think we should just forget this Ron" Harry warned "Visions are never a good thing – it could be a warning or something. We should speak to Dumbledore"

"Yeah, when he actually decides to pitch up" Ron said scathingly "he's always gone when we need him, isn't he!"

"_Ron_!" Hermione reprimanded "Dumbledore's never let us down before! Although I have to say, I don't like that he's not here…"

"Wait a minute" Ginny broke in suddenly "why were you asleep?"

Hermione looked at her oddly "what do you mean _why_?"

"She's got a point" Ron said, looking at Hermione "Since when does reading put _you_ to sleep!"

"I don't know, I guess I'm just tired…"

"What were you reading?" Ginny asked

"Ginny, what are you getting at?" Hermione interrupted

"It just seems awfully strange to me – Harry has this weird vision of you disappearing and at the same time, you're falling asleep over…"

"_The Dark Arts & How To Perform Them_!" Harry exclaimed, reading the title off the top of the page.

Ginny gasped.

"What!" cried Hermione "I wasn't…" - they were all staring at her accusingly – "you know I would never…"

"Well then how do you explain it?" Harry questioned

"I - can't" she said wistfully "the last thing I remember is opening my Herbology book…"

"Hermione – give me the book…" Ron said calmly

She handed it to him hesitantly.

"Look" Ron exclaimed, turning the book over to show them "_Herbology for Seventh Years: Volume 2_"

"What! Someone must've…" Hermione stopped - _What exactly had happened? Why couldn't she remember?_

"Someone must've switched the cover of your Herbology book with this one" Ginny answered "But who?"

"I think I have an idea" Harry said. There was only one person who really hated Hermione –

"Malfoy" Ron said aggrieved

"Oh my word!" Ginny called out abruptly "I know what's happening! Oh, why didn't I see it before? No wonder it's all so familiar!"

"Ginny?" Harry asked puzzled

"Remember in second year when Tom Riddle possessed me through that stupid diary?"

Hermione gasped "No! – it can't be happening…"

"Wait – you think Voldermort's trying to possess Hermione?" Ron asked sceptically

"It all makes sense!" Ginny continued "she doesn't remember how or why she fell asleep, she doesn't remember anything! That's exactly what happened to me…"

"But that doesn't explain my vision…" Harry interrupted

"Well, no, but we just have to figure out what it means…"

"This is just great" Hermione said sarcastically, starting to panic "so I could just turn psycho at any minute? And what does he want me for anyway? How can _I_ help him…"

"He still doesn't know about the Prophecy – maybe he's trying to use you as a spy…" Harry replied

"Maybe – or maybe this is just Malfoy trying to play a stupid prank on me!" Hermione said crossly

"Hermione" Ron said comfortingly "don't stress – all you have to do is not read any more books from now on!" and then he realised how absurd the thought was – _Hermione… not reading books_!

Hermione glared at him "Ronald – we're in the middle of our final exams – and you want me to STOP READING BOOKS!" she was starting to yell.

"What is going on here?" It was the librarian "all four of you having been talking on the tops of your voices – people are trying to study in here!" she said harshly "now – out… out you go – if you can't be quiet…"

She shooed all four of them out the door "Okay, we're going" Ron muttered. He looked cautiously over at Hermione who was stomping her way down the passage, not at all impressed at the thought of being possessed. Harry and Ginny were walking ahead, holding hands, so Ron seized the opportunity.

"Hermione" he ventured "look, I know you're upset about this…"

"Of course I'm upset!" she interrupted "wouldn't _you_ be upset!"

"Yes" he replied timidly "but I can help take your mind off it…"

She looked at him curiously.

"Well, I still need to go over my Divination studies for my exam on Tuesday" he said, looking for the right words "And I was planning to go up to the Astronomy tower tonight to get some revision done – it's a really good night for it – and I was thinking you could join me? I know you dropped Divination back in Third but you could keep me company, and you wouldn't have to worry about _this_ whole thing…"

"But Ron, what about Herbology tomorrow? I still need to get my revision done"

"Well, how about this – you help me out, join me up on the Astronomy tower tonight, and I'll spend half my time going over Herbology with you…" he said persuasively

Hermione thought about it for a second – it _was_ a tempting offer – studying by starlight…

"Okay Ron Weasley – you've talked me into it!" she said, grinning up at him.

"Brilliant!" he beamed "I'll see you later – there's something I need to go organise now…"

"Right – so what time should I meet you later then?"

"Uh – say ten o'clock?" he replied "Oh and Hermione…"

"Yeah?"

"No reading!" he grinned at her as he started off down the hall.

She rolled her eyes. _Typical Ron! He would think this is a joke! No reading – how am I going to get through my exams? Wait - what does he have to go organise now? Mmm…_

"Hermione" Harry called to her "C'mon, we're gonna go send an owl to the Order…"

"But Harry, is it safe?"

"Don't worry – I won't give any details – I'll just say that we need to speak to them urgently…"

"Yeah, I would say me being possessed by Voldermort is pretty urgent!" she said emphatically

"Exactly!" said Harry, looking concerned "so let's get going then…" he gestured

"Don't worry" said Ginny, linking arms with Hermione as they walked, "The Order will know what to do…"


	5. Starry Eyed

Chapter 5 – Starry-Eyed

Hermione was astonished to find Ron was already there when she arrived at ten o'clock on top of the Astronomy tower. He didn't see her approach – he was looking up at the stars through his telescope. It was a good night for star-gazing – completely clear and crisp. She walked over to him and placed her hand on his shoulder - he jumped, and then laughed at his startled reaction…

"Don't do that" he grinned "you'll give me a heart attack!"

"Sorry" she said softly "thought you knew it was me…" And then her eyes widened at the sight before her.

Ron had laid out a blanket, and filled it with all sorts of desserts and sweets "Ron! What's all this?" she asked pleasantly.

"Well, since you missed our picnic this afternoon, I figured you might like to join me for one tonight" he beamed.

"Oh, but you didn't have to do all this…" she said calmly but Ron noticed that she could not conceal her delighted expression.

He grinned again "I didn't have to, but I wanted to…"

"Oh, you're sweet!" she praised, giving him a hug.

"Sit down" he instructed, pointing to a soft cushion on the blanket "I'll pour you some Butterbeer"

"But Ron, what about our work… that was the reason we came up here in the first place…"

"Hermione, relax… enjoy some Butterbeer… try this delicious Appleberry cake here… and _then_ I'll start going through Herbology with you…. Okay?"

"Okay" she agreed, as he handed her a glass "but only because you went to all this trouble…"

"Thank you" he said, sitting down beside her.

She took a sip of her Butterbeer and looked down at her skirt – She looked thoughtful and Ron knew she was thinking about everything Harry and Ginny had said earlier.

"What is it?" he asked carefully

"It's just that… I have so many questions about what happened today…" she said quietly

"Don't worry about that now, Hermione – I'm sure the Order will explain everything"

"Yes, but it just doesn't make sense Ron… Harry's vision – what does it mean? Is that still going to happen?"

"I don't know"

"And, if what Ginny said is true, then why was I still in the library when you found me? Wouldn't Voldermort have made me go and do something? I'm so confused…" she shuddered at the thought of Voldermort taking control of her body - _What if she'd already done something terrible while under his control_?

"Hermione" Ron said, taking her hand to make her look at him "you're going to drive yourself insane thinking about all this – we couldn't possibly know all the answers to those questions – we need help…"

"Yes, but that's another thing – when we're usually in trouble, the first thing I do is go to find a book on the subject in the library! And now I can't even do that – I hate feeling so helpless Ron – like there's nothing I can do!"

"C'mon Hermione – I said I'd help take your mind off it – but you have to try not to think about it so much… We'll hear from the Order in the morning – and until then, just relax – I'll read to you…" he said, picking up his Herbology book.

"Okay" she said, giving in "Go through the last few chapters then – starting at _Sunflower Trees_". She was sitting, like Ron, with her back against the cold, stone tower and she suddenly felt a chill run up her spine and she shivered.

"Are you cold? Ron asked quickly "I brought an extra blanket…" he said, as he got up to fetch it.

"It _is_ a bit chilly" she replied, rubbing her arms.

"Here" he said, passing her the spare blanket as he sat down beside her again.

"Thanks" she said, throwing it over their legs "That's better" she smiled and rested her head on his shoulder as he began to read.

"Right" he began "_Sunflower Trees are extremely rare and can only be found in two particular places in the world…_ Can you tell me where?"

"Oh, that's easy – Sunflower Trees need a very specific amount of sunlight to survive – therefore, they thrive in two very similar climates – Cape Town, South Africa and Melbourne, Australia" Hermione stated simply.

"Very good" Ron praised "Now - _Their unique blossoms are rather large and bright in colour and are well known to have a very important function in the wizarding world_…".

He continued to read and the time flew by quickly, as they went through chapter after chapter, stopping occasionally for some Butterbeer or a cupcake, until finally Ron realised that they were on the last page -

"Guess what?" he said eventually "we're done!"

"What? No way!" exclaimed Hermione, who had rather started to enjoy herself "Already?"

"Yeah!" grinned Ron, surprised himself at how quickly the time had gone "it's weird – when I study alone, it seems to take hours!"

"Yeah, I know - I didn't think we'd get through it _so_ quickly" she said, smiling "Must be the company"

He smiled but then quickly turned away - he could feel his cheeks getting hot again. He cleared his throat.

"Uh, don't forget" he said, getting up from the blanket and walking towards the telescope "we still have to get _my_ exam sorted…"

"Oh right" she said. She got up, wrapped the blanket around her and walked to where he was standing "So what do you have to do?"

"Look through here" he gestured towards the telescope "Can you see that bright star over there… over on the right?"

Hermione looked through the telescope but could not see anything.

"Where?"

Ron looked through and adjusted it "Okay, come here" he said, gesturing with his hand, while still looking at the stars "Now, look" he said, standing back for her to see.

"Oh Ron" she exclaimed suddenly "It's beautiful! What star is it?"

"Actually, it's not a star – it's a constellation of stars" he informed her "It's what Muggles call _The Pegasus Constellation_. In the wizarding world, it's known as _Draco Acutus_ or _The Fierce Dragon_."

"Mmm – are you sure you need this revision?" she grinned at him

He shrugged "Well, looking at stars in only the one half of it"

"Oh right – now comes the divination…" Hermione said, with a hint of suspicion in her voice. Hermione had never truly believed in the art of divination – and the incident between her and Professor Trelawney back in third year had only encouraged her scepticism for the subject.

"Yeah" Ron said carefully "I have to plot a graph based on that constellation's various points – and then I have to interpret the graph, using my knowledge of mystical signs"

"Which you learn from your Divination Studies book?"

"Yes" he replied "and eventually you start to remember them by heart"

"So, do you enjoy it then? Do you believe in all this stuff?" she asked, intrigued by his seemingly immense knowledge on the subject.

"Well, I don't think much of all the silly predictions Professor Trelawney makes – they're only accurate about 10 of the time – but I think there's a lot more to it than she teaches us – maybe with the right teacher… Well, it's interesting anyway…" he explained "And I love looking at the stars…"

"Well, you don't have to take Divination to enjoy looking at stars" she commented and peered through the telescope again.

"Okay, so then why don't you help me find the points by checking out those stars over there – and then I'll plot the points on the graph…"

"Okay, that sounds easy enough" she said casually and they went to work on Ron's revision. By the time they were done and Ron had all the points plotted, it was eleven-thirty and Hermione was tired of standing – She walked back over the picnic blanket and flopped down onto one of the cushions that Ron had brought.

"Want some more Butterbeer?" she asked cheerfully

"Yeah, that would be great!" Ron replied. He knew it was late, but he wasn't tired. He walked over to her, with the graph still in his hands and lay down next to her to look up at the stars.

"You know, sometimes, the stars look better this way" he said

"Yeah, I know what you mean" she said "a star is beautiful close-up but when you step back and look at the whole picture – even from far away – it's breathtaking!" she sighed.

He glanced over at her gazing up at the stars - _You're breathtaking!_ he wanted to say, but stopped himself – for some reason, he just couldn't get himself to cross that line.

"Here" she said, handing him his Butterbeer. He sat up and looked at her awkwardly from across the blanket.

"Thanks" he said, starting to feel hot again. _She couldn't possibly tell what he was thinking, could she?_ He looked down into his Butterbeer, as if breaking eye contact might stop her from reading his mind… His thoughts finally wandered back around to the Ball, now that they were alone together and had no more studying to do – he was curious about how she really felt about everything…

"So are you looking forward to the Ball?" he asked eventually

"Yes" she grinned "It should be fun…" The Butterbeer had long since taken effect, and she was feeling a lot more relaxed and jovial than before. _Fun,_ Ron thought, _I hope it's more than just fun!_

"And you're sure you wouldn't prefer to go with Seamus?" he asked, trying to evoke some kind of a reaction.

Hermione rolled her eyes "No Ron Weasley – I would not prefer to go to the Ball with Seamus – I would prefer to go with you…"

"But you _are_ going with me!" he said quickly "Ar…Aren't you?" he seemed suddenly uncertain

"I don't know Ron, you tell me, because I'd swear _you'd_ prefer me to go with Seamus – you keep bringing it up!"

"I didn't mean it like that" he said, looking into her eyes "I just meant…" his words trailed off and he studied his shoes "You haven't exactly said you want to go to this Ball with me – I mean, it's implied and everything coz you said yes but I was just thinking – I mean, it's been four years since, _you know_, and well like you said, a lot has happened and you could've changed your mind…"

"Ron" she interrupted "stop rambling! Are you telling me that after all this time, you're not sure if I want to go to the Ball with you?" He could hear the aggravation in her tone. He looked up and smiled timidly. She seemed to soften at this "Ron, you're my best friend, and there is no one I'd rather go to the Yule Ball with, than you…" There were those words again – '_Best Friend' - why did she always have to stress that part? Couldn't she just have said '_there's no one I'd rather go with, than you…'

"Okay – I get it" he said despondently.

Hermione looked confused – Wasn't that supposed to make him feel _better_?

"And you better treat me better than your last date!" she chirped

"Of course!" he said suddenly "That night I wasn't myself… I wasn't… You and Viktor…"

She grinned "Actually Ron, you were yourself – 100 yourself…"

"Yes, but I don't usually act that way…"

"It's okay – I know" she said "I was only kidding – I know you'll treat me well"

"Good" he said and then a wry smile came over his face "So what are you planning to wear?"

"That's a secret" she grinned "at least until the night of the Ball…"

"Ah c'mon, give me some idea… what colour at least?"

"No, No, No" she said adamantly "it's a surprise – you'll see…" Suddenly a look of panic washed over her face "Ron, what if we don't even get to go to the Ball?"

"What do you mean, why wouldn't we…"

"What if the Ball is cancelled?" she interrupted "What if this thing with Voldermort is really serious and…"

"Hermione, calm down…" Ron said soothingly

"No, seriously – what if Voldermort uses me to get to Harry – and the Order – What am I going to do Ron? I'm really scared…"

He drew closer to her and pulled her into his arms "Ssshhh – calm down – listen to me" he said, looking deeply into her searching eyes "I will not let anything happen to you, okay? I swear, if he tries anything…"

Hermione nodded, grateful that Ron knew exactly how to comfort her "Thanks Ron" she said, snuggling into his shoulder "I needed to hear that"

"I really meant it Hermione – I swear I won't let anything happen to you" he said passionately "Plus, we're going to sort this all out with The Order tomorrow" And then a playful grin suddenly spread from one corner of his mouth to the other – "And in the meantime" he continued mischievously "You can let me _distract_ you" he grinned naughtily as he took a double-chocolate & cream doughnut off a plate covered with scrumptious treats "Now open wide!" he said, aiming the doughnut at her mouth.

"What? Ron No…" she began to protest but Ron had shoved the whole doughnut halfway into her mouth before she could say anything else. Hermione was stunned. Ron could not contain his laughter – she was just sitting there, staring disbelievingly at him, with the doughnut in her mouth and cream all over her face! He couldn't resist thinking how much fun it would be to kiss the cream off her lips, but his thoughts were abruptly interrupted when Hermione retaliated, and smeared a giant piece of Appleberry cake all over his face.

"Hey!" he objected, dripping strawberry jam everywhere "at least I was aiming for your mouth! You know you're gonna have to pay for that…" he said wiping the cream off his face. He picked up the rest of the Appleberry cake - which was made up of 4 alternate layers of whipped cream and strawberry jam (in between the sponge cake) and topped with juicy Appleberry icing – and grinned impishly at her. Hermione squealed as he came at her with the cake but it was too late – before she could do anything, he pinned her down and covered her entire face in jam and cream. She laughed as she wiped some cream away from her eyes "Well – I supposed I asked for that…"

He smiled at his handiwork "You definitely asked for it!"

"I seem to remember you asking for it _first_" she said, taking some of the leftover cake from her face, and wiping it all over Ron's, who was now just within reach as he gazed down at her, still with a stupid grin upon his face.

"You're a mess!" he beamed as he ran his finger down her face and licked off some of the cream "But you taste good!" He suddenly realised what he'd said, and even though he hadn't meant anything suggestive, he still felt his heart start thumping the minute he'd said the words...

Hermione didn't seem to notice though - she looked up at him innocently and then unexpectedly copied Ron's behaviour and ran her thumb softly over his chin, lifting off the clump of cream that had settled there. Ron suddenly felt like he dare not move – Hermione's tender touch had sent tremors throughout his body and he desperately wanted to lean in closer, but something was holding him back.

"Mmm… that's good cake…" she said simply, and then "Ron? Are you okay?" she looked amused

"Um – yeah – I'm fine" he grinned nervously, not wanting to ruin the moment - he slowly ran his finger over her soft lips, which were still covered in cream, and licked his fingers again, while drawing closer to her.

"Mmm, that really _is_ good cake" he said, but he wasn't thinking about the cake anymore – He looked into her eyes, searching for some kind of sign, but she was just staring straight back at him.

He leaned in closer and gently kissed her sweet lips, all the while waiting for her to react – but then he realised - she wasn't pushing him away! He pulled her face closer and savoured her lips – they were so soft and creamy! He kissed them slowly and tenderly. But then the love that he'd felt for her for so many years took over and he began to kiss her more passionately, his heart pounding as she responded and kissed him deeply in return. _Could this really be happening? _He'd dreamt about this moment for so long – and he couldn't believe he was here, now, kissing Hermione – it was perfect. The stars twinkled above them, as they became lost in their kiss. He finally pulled away to find her smiling up at him "That was good too…" she said dreamily – but before Ron could respond, she closed her eyes and her head fell to one side.

"Hermione?" he asked calmly, but there was no response. _How could she fall asleep?_

"Hermione… wake up…" he said, shaking her gently. And then it hit him – she wasn't sleeping – this is how he'd found her in the library earlier – she was in some sort of trance… Her face was starting to get cold - he knew he had to do something – and fast. _But what? _Everyone was in bed… Then suddenly, he realised – _Hagrid !_ He picked her up and started towards Hagrid's hut - _Hagrid will know what to do!_ he kept telling himself, trying not to panic, but he couldn't stop the ominous feeling that was starting to wash over him…


	6. Explanations

Chapter 6 – Explanations

Ron knocked desperately on Hagrid's door "Hagrid! Hagrid? Are you there? Please open up! It's urgent!"

"Alrigh', I'm comin'" Hagrid bellowed, as he reached the door. He didn't seem that surprised to see Ron standing there with Hermione in his arms, long after bedtime - and then it became clear why…

"Harry!" Ron exclaimed "what are you doing here?"

Harry had been sitting at Hagrid's rather large kitchen table and he turned to get up when he saw Ron in the doorway.

"Come in, Ron" Hagrid said, waving Ron inside "Whoa – wha' happened to you two?"

In his rush to get to Hagrid's hut, Ron had completely forgotten about their cream-covered faces, and he realised now how ridiculous they must both look – but he had no way of explaining the situation without Harry teasing him to death so he just said "Uh, nothing… I'm more worried about what's happening to her now!" he glanced down at Hermione anxiously "I don't know how it happened, but we need to help her…"

"Right – put her over there on the bed" Hagrid instructed "then come sit down - Harry's got sumpfin' to tell ya…"

Ron gently laid Hermione down on Hagrid's giant bed and looked at her apprehensively. He felt her hands – they were cold. He quickly covered her with a blanket and walked over to where Hagrid and Harry were waiting for him.

"Okay Harry – I know you're here for a reason – what is it?" Ron asked worriedly "Do you know what's going on?"

"I had another vision" Harry stated carefully "well, it was a dream this time – but it was the same as my vision – only, the pain I felt was more intense, and the fear I sensed, it was more intense as well – Ron, I don't know exactly what's happening here, but I think my visions are real – It's hard to explain, but Hermione's really gone – not physically, but mentally - I think Voldermort is holding her captive somewhere – at least temporarily – I'm not sure what his intentions are but she does definitely need our help…"

"So what do we do?" Ron asked frantically, looking from Harry to Hagrid.

"Hold on, first we need to know how this happened…" said Harry "What were you doing?"

Ron blushed as he remembered exactly what they had been doing when it happened… but the curious look on Harry's face quickly brought him back to reality –

"Nothing much – we had a picnic - she wasn't reading, if that's what you want to know…"

"So you were doing _nothing _and she suddenly just fell into this trance…" Harry queried, half-grinning

"Uh, yeah…" said Ron uncomfortably "that's exactly what happened – it was so sudden – she just suddenly closed her eyes and fell asleep…"

"And you're sure she wasn't near any books?"

"Yeah, I was reading to her from my Herbology book, but that's about as close as she got – and that was long before it happened…"

"I just don't get it then…" Harry said, starting to pace up and down the hut "there doesn't seem to be any sort of pattern…"

"I think we'd best be getting a hold'v Professor Dumbledore" Hagrid said finally "this is pretty darn serious and I think the Order should be informed"

"We already sent them an owl this afternoon…"

Suddenly there was a knock on the door. Everybody froze.

"Uh – Who's there?" Hagrid asked feebly

"Hagrid – open up!" It was Dumbledore!

"Oh, Come in, come in, Professor" Hagrid said quickly "we were jus' comin' to find you…"

"Yes" said Dumbledore calmly "I know. However, I don't think young Miss Granger would've been up to the trip – she's not doing so well right now…"

Hagrid sighed – Dumbledore always knew everything before being told.

"Professor" Harry said quickly "what's happening to her? And why am I having these visions?"

"Calm down Harry – all will be revealed soon enough"

"But Professor" objected Ron "we need to help her – she could be dying!" he yelled despondently. The events of the day had finally started to take its toll on Ron – considering everything, a lot had happened since breakfast and he suddenly felt exhausted.

"Mr Weasley – I know you're worried about your friend, but we must not start to panic. I will explain everything in a few minutes, if you'll just sit down and relax"

"So what are we waiting for then?" Ron sat down opposite Harry, feeling exasperated.

"You'll see" Dumbledore said casually

Ron threw Harry a questioning look – but Harry didn't know what Dumbledore was talking about either and simply shrugged his shoulders.

After a few minutes, Ron could not take it anymore –

"I'm sorry, I _can't_ just sit here!" he said emphatically, and walked over to where Hermione was lying on the bed "she's getting worse! She's so cold…" he said, as he felt her cheek. He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it softly "Hermione – _please _come back to me…" he pleaded. And then he remembered – the Waking spell!

"I've got it!" Ron exclaimed "why can't we perform a waking spell?" he looked pleadingly at Dumbledore.

"Ah Mr Weasley – I'm afraid a simple waking spell will not be powerful enough to break through Voldermort's dark magic - there is only _one_ thing that will bring Miss Granger back to us – it's something that you have just demonstrated - something that Voldermort has no power over – and will never fully understand - and I suspect it's why she awoke so quickly earlier today in the library…" Ron looked questioningly at Dumbledore.

"Love, Mr Weasley – it's the only thing powerful enough to bring Miss Granger back to us…"

"Love? …" Ron repeated, questioningly

"Yes, of course!" exclaimed Harry. Harry had discovered Voldermort's only real weakness – pure love – in his very first year at Hogwarts when Voldermort had tried to steal the Philosopher's stone.

"Yes, Mr Weasley – _True _Love – the kind that would sacrifice everything to protect the one you love - the kind that cannot simply stand back and wait while your loved one is in danger - the kind of love that you feel for Miss Granger…"

Ron blushed uncontrollably – why was Dumbledore telling him all this in front of the others?

"Today, in the library, it was you who woke her, was it not?" Dumbledore continued

"Yes, but…" Ron objected "I can't seem to wake her now…"

"Ah – things are not always as they seem, Mr Weasley – do not underestimate the power of true love…"

Ron couldn't help wondering why Dumbledore always seemed to talk to riddles…

"So does that mean that Hermione…" Ron asked gingerly

"Ah – it is not for me to tell you how Miss Granger feels" Dumbledore interjected "but I think you already have _some _idea…" he winked at Ron, sending Ron into another fit of furious blushing. _How could Dumbledore possibly know what happened between them earlier?_

Suddenly, a muffled murmuring sound emanated from Hagrid's bed – Hermione was stirring -

"Ron?"

Ron turned and rushed forwards "Hermione?" He quickly sat beside her and took her hand – it was getting warmer! "Hermione?" He thought his heart was going to leap out of his chest –

"Ron – where am I?" she mumbled, squinting up at him.

Ron could not contain his overwhelming emotions – he swept her up and held her firmly in his arms, unable to speak.

"Ron? Ron – I'm okay…" Hermione was saying, but he refused to let her go…

"Hagrid – Harry – Professor!" Hermione said, just noticing everybody staring at them "What happened?"

Ron pulled away to look at her – and took her hand again "You're back… I was so scared Hermione… you were so cold…"

Hermione looked at him with a puzzled expression on her face –

"What's going on?" she asked, confused "What am I doing here?"

"You mean, you don't remember what happened?" asked Harry

Dumbledore sighed "It is as I feared…"

"What!" said Ron

"Voldermort has altered Miss Granger's memory – he does not want us finding out what his Master Plan is – and unfortunately, Miss Granger has been affected…"

Ron stared at Dumbledore in disbelief, and turned back to Hermione…

"You can't remember a_nything_ about tonight?" he asked desperately

"No, the last thing I remember is talking to you in the library…" Hermione answered "Why, what happened?"

Ron looked distraught.

"And what is this stuff on my face?" she continued, thoroughly confused.

"Yeah, that's what we've all been wondering" Harry grinned "Ron?"

"Uh - It's cream, and probably some jam too" Ron sighed, realising they would not be satisfied until they got a full explanation "we were having a picnic, up on the Astronomy tower – don't you remember?" he asked somewhat hopefully in her direction. She shook her head and looked away from his desperate eyes.

"Well, anyway, I was reading to you from my Herbology book to help you revise for tomorrow, and then you helped me revise for my Divination final. And then we kinda got into a food fight – well, a cake fight to be exact…" he said softly. Hermione looked embarrassed "Oh, I see" she blushed "and - is that _all_?"

Ron hesitated for a second before replying – he wasn't going to tell her about a kiss she clearly couldn't remember – she wouldn't know what to say – and he wasn't going to mention it in front of everyone –

"Uh yeah – that's it – until, of course, you passed out"

"So I was just talking to you one minute, and the next I passed out?" she questioned

Ron could feel his cheeks starting to burn "Yeah! Sort of… It was pretty sudden…"

"'ermione" It was Hagrid, who had silently been observing up until this point "do ya remember anythin' about where you was jus' now? Ya know – when you was gone?"

Hermione realised that she had no recollection of where she had been – in fact – had she even been gone?

"No" she said despondently "I don't remember anything… Professor – what's happening to me? Will I ever remember what happened today?" she looked at Professor Dumbledore.

Professor Dumbledore sighed "It would seem that Voldermort has finally given up on trying to get into Harry's mind – Harry's built up a strong resistance through his Occlumency lessons over the years – so now he's trying a new strategy – he's trying to use you, Miss Granger, to get to Harry. So far, we have been successful in keeping The Prophecy a secret, but Voldermort will still do anything to try and find out what it foretells…"

He paused "And it is by no co-incidence that Harry is having these visions about you – Voldermort and Harry still have an undeniable connection – so when Voldermort exercises his power to control you, he unintentionally alerts Harry's subconscious – which sends Harry these powerful images – images that I believe are the key to putting a stop to all of this…"

Harry looked puzzled "But Professor, what I've seen, it's not enough to help us…"

"Ah, you mean, what you remember seeing… You see, Harry, visions are like dreams – sometimes, you wake up and you can only remember a fraction of the dream you had – well, I believe that there's a whole lot more to your vision, being stored up in your subconscious somewhere, and I'm going to teach you how to access it…"

"And Hermione?" asked Harry "What about what she doesn't remember? Can't we find a way to access her subconscious, maybe help her remember?"

"Hang on - I still don't understand" said Ron "How did Voldermort get into Hermione's mind to begin with? I mean, we all know that Harry has this connection to him, so he used that but Hermione…"

"One at a time boys… Good question, Mr Weasley. You're right, although Voldermort is a powerful dark wizard, he still needs a point of contact with a person to enter their mind. You remember the book Miss Granger was reading in the library?"

"_The Dark Arts & How To Perform Them_" Harry recited

"Yes. Now ordinarily a simple book would do no harm – but we all know how dangerous a book can become once it's been bewitched with evil powers such as Voldermort's. Miss Granger simply had to read one word from the page – and it gave Voldermort the access he needed to enter her mind. Troubling, I know, but usually such a book would never find its way onto school premises – which means, Voldermort had help – someone to do his dirty work"

"It could only have been Malfoy" said Harry angrily

"Now, Now, Harry – we cannot accuse Mr Malfoy of anything just yet" said Dumbledore calmly "but the culprit will be revealed soon enough. Now - to answer your question Harry – I know it seems like you and Miss Granger are in the same situation here but the images that have been locked away in your subconscious were sent to you unintentionally and therefore Voldermort will not try to stop us from retrieving that information: we have the advantage. However, in Miss Granger's case, Voldermort knows that we'll be trying to access her memories and he would've done everything in his power to stop us from doing so – he'll have put up mentalbarriers in her mind - he was always very talented when it came to understanding the Powers of the Mind – and so, I'm afraid we may never be able to retrieve those memories…"

"So this memory loss could be permanent?" Hermione interrupted

"It's too soon to tell, Miss Granger, but there's no point giving you false hope – it could well be the case. But, obviously we must now try to prevent this from ever happening again… Miss Granger, I would like for you to start Occlumency lessons straight away… and it wouldn't hurt for you to start them as well, Mr Weasley… we can't be too careful – there is a war going on and nothing can be presumed any more"

"But Professor, what about our exams?" Hermione asked frantically "how am I supposed to study?"

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled "Miss Granger, I am almost positive you do not need any more revision for your final exams – but, if you would like to study further, I do not think a re-occurrence of what happened in the library is likely – however, you must be extremely careful and guard your books diligently"

"And Occlumency?" asked Ron "when do we start that?"

"Right away" said Dumbledore "after your exam tomorrow – there is no time to waste!"

"But Professor, until then…" Hermione objected

"I'm afraid there's nothing you can do to stop it from happening, Miss Granger – but it might help to keep Mr Weasley close by" he winked at Ron and got up to leave "and now, I do believe some sleep is in order – there are still exams tomorrow…"

Harry grinned at Hermione's puzzled expression.

"What did he mean by that? Why must I _keep you close by_?" she asked in Ron's direction after Dumbledore had left.

"Because Ron's the only one who can bring you back when you go into a trance like that…" Harry explained with a glint in his eye.

"He is? But why?" said asked curiously

"I think I'll let Ron explain that" Harry grinned impishly "Go on Ron, tell her why…"

Ron looked as though he could've strangled Harry at that point but he soon realised Hermione was still standing there, expecting an answer. He cleared his throat "Uh… it's a long story Hermione – don't worry about it now… c'mon, let's go back to the common room" he said "I assume you can walk? Or would you like me to carry you?"

"But Ron…" she objected, not budging.

"Okay fine then" he said, picking her up "I guess I'll have to carry you!"

"Ron – put me down!" she said furiously, as Harry just sat there laughing at his two best friends.

"Nope – you didn't want to walk – so now you have to let me carry you – how do you think you got here in the first place?" he grinned

"Harry! _Make him_ put me down!" Hermione squealed, trying to punch Ron on the arm.

"Sorry" Harry grinned "but it's more amusing watching Ron carry you"

Hermione scowled but realised she was not going to win this one – Ron was determined to carry her all the way back to the castle.

"Okay – I give up!" she laughed "But it's a long way…"

"You'd swear you weigh a ton with all the objecting you do – honestly Hermione – you're as light as a feather!" he grinned "so stop complaining…"

"Oh, cut it out, you two!" Harry said finally "Now let's go – it's late…" he said, closing the door "Bye Hagrid!"

"Bye you lot! I'll be seeing ya all soon – now best be getting off ta bed…"

"Right – we're going" said Ron, as Hermione put her arms around his neck and rested her head on his shoulder. "Hey" whispered Ron "Just don't go falling into a trance again…"

Hermione yawned "I won't, but would you mind if I got some sleep? It feels like it's been a long day…"

_You have no idea!_ thought Ron, as the three of them headed off to bed.


	7. Memories

**Chapter 7 – Memories**

The next day, the Gryffindors were all surprised to find out that their Herbology final had been moved to 2 pm that day – Harry, Ron and Hermione all realised why and were grateful for the extra hours of sleep Professor Dumbledore had allowed them. When Harry finally stirred after an extra 3 hours sleep, he was surprised to find Ron already awake and sitting by his bed. He reached for his glasses.

"How long have you been sitting there?" Harry asked sleepily

"Just about an hour" Ron said nonchalantly

"So you've been waiting for me to wake up?" Harry looked amused. He knew there had to be something on Ron's mind – for one thing, he never got up before Harry, in fact, on some occasions, Harry remembered having to shake Ron awake – so this was definitely an unusual occurrence.

"Well – sort of - there's something I need to tell you" Ron said eagerly "It's driving me crazy not knowing what to do…"

Ron continued after Harry shot him an _I'm-completely-lost_ look

"The other night, when Hermione and I were up on the Astronomy tower, we didn't just have a food fight…"

"I knew it!" Harry exclaimed triumphantly "I knew there was more to the story!"

Ron looked down at his toes – he could feel himself turning red again.

"Well – go on then – don't keep me in suspense!" Harry coaxed

Ron continued, all the while still studying his shoes "Well, I sort of kissed her" he said, barely audible.

"Sorry, what was that?" Harry asked, even though he'd heard perfectly well what Ron had said "I didn't quite hear you…" he put his hand up to his ear.

"I said -" Ron repeated, looking up to guage Harry's reaction "I kissed Hermione!"

Harry was sitting there with a smug grin all over his face.

"Well, it's about time, don't you think!" he commented eventually "You've only been in love with her for _years_!"

Ron laughed.

"I know, I know" he said "but Harry – she doesn't remember! I finally kissed her – after all this time – and it was _so_ amazing - and she doesn't even remember it! What am I going to do? She won't understand if I tell her I kissed her – She'll want to know why and how and…"

"Maybe you won't have to tell her" Harry said, looking thoughtful "I mean, she could still get her memory back"

"After what Dumbledore said, it doesn't look very likely…" Ron said, frowning.

"Hey - Don't give up - We haven't even tried the Occlumency on her yet…"

Ron reluctantly nodded his agreement.

"I think you're right about not telling her though – I'm not too sure how she'd react" Harry said

"So I guess it's decided then – I shouldn't tell her" Ron stated glumly.

"Cheer up" Harry said encouragingly "I'm guessing by what you said that she kissed you back?"

Ron nodded, and smiled as he remembered what she'd said to him after he kissed her - _that was good too_.

"So, then what do you look so depressed for!" Harry exclaimed "at least now you know how she'll react next time – she must like you or she'd never have let you kiss her"

It took a few seconds for Harry's words to sink in – and then suddenly Ron realised what Harry was saying –

_Of course!_ He had been so pre-occupied with worrying about Hermione and what Voldermort was doing to her that he hadn't stopped to consider what that kiss actually meant – Hermione must have feelings for him!

"You really think…" he stammered, still in shock as his brain struggled to process this new information _Hermione likes me! Could it really be true?_ His whole face lit up, as Harry eyed him curiously.

"Yes Ron, I really think that. I mean, do you ever remember Hermione having a boyfriend? Don't you think it's strange, considering all the attention the rest of the guys give her, that she hasn't gone out with _anyone_?"

"Well, that's because she's always hanging out with us" Ron said matter-of-factly

"Exactly!" said Harry, as if Ron just proved his point "I mean, who would spend all their time with their best friend, when they could be going out with a potential boyfriend, unless…"

"Unless, she has feelings for her best friend?"

"Yes" said Harry "starting to see my point?"

"Yeah, suddenly it seems really obvious" Ron felt his ears start to burn _How could he have been so thick?_

"Well, anyway" Harry continued "don't worry about it now – we've all got a lot to keep us busy – and hopefully the Occlumency will help Hermione remember and then you won't have to say anything…"

"I guess you're right Mate" Ron agreed "but I can tell you one thing – I don't think I can go through another night like last night – I really thought something terrible…"

"I know" said Harry "but remember what Dumbledore said – about _true love_ - it's the best weapon we have"

"Yeah – and now I have to try and explain that to Hermione" Ron exclaimed "_thanks to you!"_

Harry chuckled "Yeah, sorry, I couldn't resist"

Ron shook his head in mock disapproval "Honestly! And you call yourself my best friend!" he grinned and then stood up, looking at Harry expectantly "C'mon, time to get out of bed Mate!"

"Yeah, some breakfast would be good" Harry said

"Breakfast!" Ron chuckled "you mean, lunch, don't you!"

Harry glanced over at his clock and grinned – it was already twelve!

"Well – lunch, whatever!" Harry said, climbing out of bed "the point is I'm hungry!" he said, and quickly got dressed and they both made their way down to the Great Hall.

* * *

"That was terrible!" Hermione exclaimed, as she, Harry and Ron made their way back from their Herbology final. Harry and Ron exchanged their usual exasperated look.

"You always say that!" Ron argued

"Yeah, and then you get 115 percent!" Harry added

"Yes but…" she defended pointlessly "I could've done better…"

Ron rolled his eyes "Not likely!"

It was a ridiculous little argument that the three of them had often - but today was different. Ron found an odd sort of comfort in its triviality – after the previous day's dramatic events, he was grateful for the insignificant familiarities of every day life.

"Well, at least it's over!" Harry said, hoping to end the meaningless dispute

"You can say that again!" Ron agreed

"No, seriously guys – it's weird – I remember studying really hard for Herbology, up to chapter 7 but when I got to the exam it's like my mind went blank!"

"Hermione, I'm sure it wasn't that bad…" Ron interrupted

"Hold on – there's more" she stated quickly "and this is the weird part: I don't remember studying at all for chapters 8 to 12, but in the exam, those were the chapters I seemed to know!"

Ron and Harry looked at her curiously –

"Chapter 8 – that's…" Harry started, trying to make sense of it

"Sunflower Trees!" Ron exclaimed suddenly, remembering the night before.

"Yes – Sunflower Trees – I seem to know an awful lot about them, considering we only went over them once in class!" Hermione said, confused.

"Ron – what is it?" Harry asked curiously – Ron looked like he was seriously contemplating something.

"Well - I'm not sure what's going on here" he said hesitantly "but Sunflower Trees – that was the chapter we started our studying at last night…"

Hermione looked at him in disbelief.

"So, I can't remember anything about what we studied last night but somehow, today in the exam, it all just comes back to me? I don't get it – I didn't _remember _this stuff - it was like it was second nature or something!" She stated, completely perplexed.

"Well – those memories had to have come from somewhere!" Harry exclaimed "So I'm guessing that your memories were not completely erased – just buried somewhere deep in your subconscious…"

"Really weird!" Ron exclaimed, grinning from ear to ear "But this is great!"

Hermione shot Ron an inquisitive look "Yes, its great news Ron – but you'd swear it was _your_ memory!"

"What?" Ron defended "I can't be worried about you?"

Hermione blushed slightly before recovering "Uh, no – I mean, yes, but well – I'm curious"

"Curious?" Ron asked, puzzled

Hermione looked over at Harry as if he'd suddenly transformed into a third wheel – why did she feel so awkward having this conversation in front of him?

"It's just that – well - _why_ are you so worried about me getting my memory back? It was only one day, right? And we were just studying, right? So - unless…" she paused to look at Ron, who was desperately trying to stay calm, even though he could feel his ears turning red and his heart throbbing violently "Unless something happened…" she finished, looking at him expectantly

"Like what?" he asked, trying to sound casual.

"I don't know! That's what I'm trying to figure out!" Hermione yelled in frustration "And you're not helping!"

Ron shot Harry a quick look of desperation and Harry caught on at once –

"I think we better get going" he said quickly "We've got Occlumency before _and_ after dinner tonight, remember?"

"Oh right!" Ron added quickly "We've got to be there in a few minutes!"

"But..." Hermione started to object

"C'mon Hermione" Ron said, starting to walk away "this is important – you want to get your memories back, don't you?"

"Yes, but why can't you just…" she began

But she was interrupted yet again -

"Hey guys" it was Ginny, walking towards them "where are you all off to in such a hurry?"

"Hey Gin" Harry greeted, giving her a quick kiss "we're heading off to Dumbledore's office… for Occlumency"

"Oh right – I forgot about that" she answered "well – I'll see you at dinner then?"

"Yeah" Harry replied

"Ginny wait… can I speak to you for a second?"" Ron said quickly, seizing the opportunity to escape Hermione's persistent enquiries

"Yeah sure - What is it?" Ginny asked

"Uh – I'll catch up to you guys in a minute" he said to Harry, as Hermione angrily stomped past him and Ginny. When they were out of earshot, Ron continued –

"Ginny – about the dance lessons…"

"Yes – I was thinking we could start tonight – I mean the Ball is only a few days away…"

"I know, but now this Occlumency stuff has come up – Dumbledore's probably gonna keep us at it every spare minute we have!" Ron exclaimed despondently

"So what do you suggest then?"

"I dunno – know any spells?" he grinned, as he envisioned himself and Hermione floating around the dance floor.

"Ron - I'm afraid there _are_ no spells to cure two left feet!" Ginny laughed

Ron frowned, looking hurt "Hey! Who said I have two left feet?"

"It just sorta runs in the family!" she grinned "but don't worry, after a few lessons, you'll be fine"

"And when are we gonna have time for these lessons? We also have exams going on in case you hadn't noticed!" he said sombrely

"Yeah – and there's another problem – how do I get you guys alone to teach you without Hermione suspecting anything? I mean, you want it to be a surprise, don't you?"

"Yeah"

They both stood for a few seconds deep in thought until finally Ginny spoke –

"Wait a minute…" Ginny said suddenly "Doesn't Hermione write Arithmancy tomorrow?"

"Yeah – of course!" Ron said, catching on "and Harry and I have the day off!"

"Perfect!" Ginny said "I don't write tomorrow either!"

"Brilliant! Then we'll meet you in the common room, sometime after breakfast…" Ron stated excitedly

"Yeah, okay… but you better get going now or you'll be late…" Ginny reminded, pointing at her watch.

"Oh right – see you later!" Ron said cheerfully, walking past her. Then suddenly he stopped and turned "Oh, and Ginny – Thanks!" he said gratefully, giving her a hug "You're the best!"

"No problem" she smiled "that's what sisters are for!" she called as he sprinted off to Dumbledore's office.


	8. Mixed Signals

**Chapter 8 – Mixed Signals**

The Occlumency lessons seemed to be paying off – it had been several days and Hermione had not blacked out once. Surprisingly, Ron had found the lessons quite a lot easier than he first anticipated – perhaps because they were practical – theory had always been Hermione's strong point – and was probably why she didn't take to Occlumency straight away but as with everything Hermione did, once she finally got the hang of it, she got the hang of it _perfectly_.

Professor Dumbledore had been pleased to hear about Hermione's Herbology exam – he'd said that it could only mean good things – although, even he was puzzled by the bizarre switch between her subconscious and conscious mind during her exam. Hermione had still not managed though to access her memories through Occlumency, and she still eyed Ron suspiciously every now and then, wondering what he could possibly be concealing from her.

Ginny had been quite impressed to find that Ron did not in fact have two left feet – in fact, out of all her brothers, he seemed to take to dancing the quickest. She spent one whole day teaching him and Harry while Hermione wrote Arithmancy after which Ron would not stop waltzing around the common room with an imaginary dance partner, driving Harry crazy. Harry, it seemed, did not have a major talent for dancing and had stepped on Ginny's feet more than once. Ginny had found it cute but Harry just got frustrated and threatened to zap Ron with a Freezing spell if he didn't stop 'prancing around like a pansy'.

The time passed quickly over the next few days, what with exams, Occlumency and stolen moments to practice dancing – and before anyone realised it – a whole week and a half had flown by. It was the night before the Ball – they had finally finished with their exams after their History of Magic exam that day and Harry, Ron and Hermione were sitting by the fire, enjoying the quiet that engulfed the Gryffindor common room, once everyone else had gone to bed, after a long night of celebrating the end of exams. Ginny had retired early, saying something about needing 'beauty sleep' but Hermione was feeling nostalgic and wanted to stay up and reminisce with her old friends… She was sitting next to Ron on the couch and Harry sat in the chair opposite them –

"I can't believe it's finally here" she said sadly "Our last year at Hogwarts… pretty soon, it'll be the end of the year and we'll have to say goodbye…"

Ron shot her a questioning look –

"Not to each other, I mean" she clarified "but to this place, to everyone else here…"

"I know what you mean" said Harry, as he thought about what he would've done if someone hadn't rescued him from his dismal existence at the Dursleys. Hogwarts had become his reason for living.

"Cheer up, you two!" Ron said, grinning "the end of school is not the end of the world! There is a world _outside_ Hogwarts!"

"Yes but, Hogwarts has been my life!" said Hermione emphatically "I love it here!"

"Me too" said Harry "I don't know what I would've done without this place - I mean, what about Quidditch?"

"Yeah, and the brilliant library!"

"We'll experience _other_ libraries, and _other _Quidditch teams!" Ron objected "besides, you two seem to be forgetting all the things we're _not_ gonna miss about this place" Ron interrupted "like what about – Snape… and _Malfoy_? And what about Peeves getting us into trouble all the time? And what about all the bad things that have happened? Like that time… with the s-spiders…" Even though Ron had shown remarkable courage in second year when he had had to face his worst fear: spiders, he'd never really forgotten the nightmarish ordeal and the visions of those giant spiders still haunted him from time to time "Yeah – and what about Professor Umbridge?" he said towards Harry. Harry shivered at the mention of her name.

"Yeah, but what about all the fun we've had? And all the good things we've done?" Hermione argued "like when we proved that Hagrid was innocent when everyone else thought he was petrifying people! Or how about all the times we've helped to stop Voldermort…" she paused, suddenly unsure of how she was helping to stop Voldermort now.

Harry sensed what she was thinking "We _will_ stop him Hermione" he said quickly "you don't need to worry – this thing – whatever he's up to – we'll fight it – and we'll win, like we have all those times before…"

"Yeah – and the Occlumency is obviously helping, right? I mean, nothing's happened since we started it" said Ron

"Actually – that's kinda what bugs me about this whole thing" said Hermione "it's almost like he's waiting for something – like a cat stalking a bird – he's just suddenly going to strike when we least expect it"

"Well – we'll be ready when he does" said Ron confidently "We've been in this war for a while now – and we've learnt a lot considering we're still at school – how many other seventh years had to fight in a magical war? And now that we're taking Occlumency as well…"

"He _is_ right, you know" Harry affirmed "We do know more than most other witches and wizards our age"

"Yes, okay, but I just don't think we should get complacent" Hermione said fervently.

Suddenly, a huge grin spread across Ron's face –

"Don't worry Hermione – we'll come rescue you!" he said, springing up and waving his wand around like a sword "Voldermort – Surrender the girl or I'll fight you to the death!" he said pointing his wand at Harry

Harry decided to play along "I will not surrender her!" he said in mock-seriousness and he jumped up and pointed his wand at Ron's chest. Hermione rolled her eyes, but after a few minutes of watching Harry and Ron prancing around, engrossed in a ridiculous wand-fight, she could not contain her amusement any longer and exploded with laughter.

"Stop!" she yelled between bursts of laughter "You're going to kill me over here!"

Exhausted, Ron went walked over the to the fire and slumped back on to he couch, satisfied that he'd achieved his goal –

"Finally – a laugh" he said triumphantly, smiling at her.

"I'm exhausted!" Harry said, out of breath "I think I'm gonna turn in"

"Sure Mate – Night!" Ron said

"Night Harry – see you at breakfast" Hermione added

"Don't stay up too late" he grinned, winking at Ron

"Yeah, well, we don't _all_ need beauty sleep" Ron retorted, grinning at Hermione

"Well, maybe _Hermione_ doesn't…" Harry quipped back

"Oh, just go off to bed, you git!" Ron grinned.

Harry shrugged and ascended the stairs to the boys' dorm. Ron rested his arm on the back of the couch and waited for Hermione to shift up and curl into his shoulder, like she always did when they were alone – but she just sat there, staring at him.

"What?" he looked at her questioningly.

"It's just that – well - oh, I don't know" she chickened out, looking at her feet

"Hermione, what is it?" he looked concerned. She turned to face him.

"Ron, it's just that I feel kinda weird around you – it feels like you're keeping something from me, and every time I ask, you just…"

"Change the subject?" he grinned "How was that exam today, hey?"

"_Ronald_!" she exclaimed, in frustration

"I'm sorry" he said earnestly "You're right – there is something I need to tell you, Hermione. And I promise, I will, but just not now, not today"

"But Ron, why not today?"

"The timing just isn't right – you'd probably…"

"I'd probably what?" she prompted

"Nevermind!" he said quickly "look – I promise I'll tell you – tomorrow, at the Ball"

"Tomorrow? You can tell me tomorrow, but not…?" she looked confused

"Just trust me, okay?"

"Okay, Ron, I'll trust you, but it better be good!"

_It will be!_ He thought to himself.

"Come here" he gestured, and she moved closer, and rested her head on his shoulder.

"I'm really going to miss this" she sighed "sitting here by the fire - with you – talking, thinking…"

"Me too" he said contentedly "by the way, you know, we _are_ going to see each other once school ends" he teased.

Hermione grinned "I know! But it won't be the same, will it?"

"Well, not exactly the same – but nothing can remain the same forever, can it? Everything has to grow, to change – and that's not always a bad thing you know…" he said, his mind drifting to their somewhat confusing friendship/relationship. He wondered, if Hermione did return his feelings, why had she never said anything? Was she happy just to remain friends forever?

"Ronald Weasley – was that _you_, talking about _growing _and _changing _and all that mature adult stuff!" she mocked

"Well, in case you hadn't noticed, Miss Granger, I _have_ grown up in the last seven years!" he smiled back

She looked over at him, as if she was inspecting him closely "I do believe you're right– you _have_ grown up, Ron Weasley! I mean, you're m_uch taller_ now than when I first met you…" She teased.

"Very funny" he said, sarcastically "you know that's not what I meant!"

"I know" she said, more solemnly "I know what you meant" she said softly and looked into the fire "I guess I just don't feel ready yet – to move on from all of this"

"Hermione – you're thinking about this too much! The things that matter to you, and I mean _really_ matter, like people you care about, or lessons you've learnt, those things stay with you…" He looked over at her, but she just kept gazing into the fire, thinking.

"I guess you're right" she said finally "You and Harry are the only people I really care about in this place… and I know we'll be friends forever"

_Right,_ thought Ron, _FRIENDS… forever_! He turned his head away from her. _I can't take this anymore! I have to do something._

"Ron" Hermione placed her hand on his leg "are you okay?"

Ron's heart stopped – "Uh… yeah" he said, starting to feel hot

"You're just so quiet" she continued

"I was thinking" he said "about what you said" he slowly moved his hand over hers and started playing with her fingers "I mean, we don't exactly have a normal friendship, do we?"

"What do you mean it's not a _normal_ friendship!" she looked up, her eyes blazing

Ron grinned "I meant - it's more special…"

She smiled shyly at him –

"So?" she said quickly

"So - do you ever do this with Harry?"

"Do what?" she asked innocently

"_This_" he said, and intertwined his fingers with hers. It was dark and the firelight may have been misleading but Ron was almost positive that she was blushing.

"Do you have a point, Ron?" she asked finally, staring into his unwavering gaze.

"Hermione" he began, but he couldn't seem to find the words, as he became mesmerised by her enchanting eyes. He leaned in a bit closer, and she leaned in a bit closer to him too, but then suddenly –

"Uh – I better get to bed!" Hermione said quickly, getting up from the couch "Uh - it's really late, and it's the Ball tomorrow and – oh my word – is that the time!"

"Hermione…" Ron objected

"And despite what Harry says, I do still need my beauty sleep…" she rambled on, heading for the girls dormitory

"Okay" Ron said "See you in the morning!" he called after her

"Night!" she yelled, practically sprinting up the stairs to her room.

Ron scowled in frustration - _Girls! Why are they so confusing! We were so close…_ he thought. And then his frown transformed into a smile… _We were so close…_


	9. Secrets and Rows

**Chapter 9 – Secrets and Rows**

Ron and Harry were both awoken the following morning by excited chatter emanating from the common room. After several scowls from Ron ('How could anybody in their right mind be up this bloody early!'), curiosity eventually drove them out of their dormitory and onto the staircase leading down into the common room. But there they stopped – and stared – for the sight before them was unbelievable. There were girls _everywhere_. They were eagerly discussing the Ball with all their friends – what they were wearing – who they were going with – anything to do with the Ball that evening was suitable as a topic of conversation. Ron was particularly amused to spot Hermione among them, deep in discussion with Parvati, the book she'd been reading long since forgotten on the table beside her.

"Can you believe this?" Harry asked incredulously "I've never seen so many girls in one place!"

"I didn't even know all these girls were in Gryffindor!" Ron exclaimed

"Tell me about it!" Seamus said, suddenly behind them "Well – what are we waiting for?" he grinned mischievously "All those girls… so little time…"

"Sorry Seamus – Already taken, remember?" Harry said quickly

"Okay, so Harry's got an excuse – Ron, you comin?"

"Uhhh…" Ron spluttered "I dunno, Seamus"

"C'mon, it's not like you're tied down like Mr Potter here"

"Go on Ron" Harry grinned "Go flirt with your date a little…"

"Alright, alright! I can see this conversation's just going downhill anyway" he said, following Seamus down the stairs. He followed Seamus through the crowd, over to where Parvati, Lavender and Hermione were sitting.

"Hi Girls" Seamus greeted "mind if we join you?"

"Sure" Parvati said quickly, shifting up "there's space for you over here on the couch"

"Great" Seamus said, and abruptly went over to Parvati and left Ron standing alone.

"Hi Ron" Hermione said awkwardly

"Uh, hi" he replied, not quite sure what to do next

"Wanna sit?" she said, indicating the chair beside her

"Yeah" he answered and quickly sat down.

"So… did you sleep well?" Hermione asked, fidgeting with a nearby piece of parchment

"Yeah, sure. And you?"

"Yeah. Nothing unusual at all." she replied, catching his eye for a second, but then she returned to twirling the parchment over and over in her hand.

Silence.

_This is too weird! _Ron thought to himself _Why can't I think of anything to say? And WHY is Hermione fidgeting like that? She must feel weird too._

"Uh, Hermione, I have to go…" he stated suddenly "I forgot - Harry asked me to _help_ him with _something_…" he mumbled

"What? Right now, this minute?" she looked confused

"Uh yeah – something to do with Ginny" he invented "So, uh, see you later?"

"Oh, okay" she said, looking a bit disappointed

"Bye…" he said, backing away towards the stairs

"Bye" she replied "See you" and she turned back to her book (There was no point in rejoining her conversation with the girls, as both Parvati and Lavender were now so completely engrossed in whatever Seamus had to say, they hadn't even noticed her sitting there alone).

Ron ran back up the stairs to join Harry, who had obviously witnessed the whole thing and who now had a smug grin plastered all over his face –

"Well – I must say, that was quick" Harry remarked "Trouble in paradise?"

"Don't start - " Ron began, before Harry could continue "that was really awkward"

"Why?" Harry looked perplexed

"Um, I think I know" Ron answered, sitting down next to Harry on the top step.

"Yeah?" Harry coaxed

"Well, I'm not sure, because nothing actually happened but…well, there was this _one_ moment last night…" Ron paused

"Yeah… And?" Harry's eyes widened

"Well, I could've sworn, just for a split second…"

"Hey! I've been looking for you two!" Ginny came running up the stairs, interrupting Ron

"Hi Gin" Harry said, giving her a kiss "I didn't see you down there…"

"That's because I wasn't down there" she explained "I was checking the Quidditch pitch! What are you two doing, hiding away here on the staircase anyway?"

"Er, we're not hiding" Ron answered, rather quickly

"Yeah, we were watching this, um, _phenomenon_" Harry grinned. Ginny followed his eyes to the mob of girls below and immediately shot him a _you-better-explain-yourself-quickly_ look.

"I mean, have you ever seen so many girls?" Harry continued

"What!" Ginny said disbelievingly

"What Harry _meant_ was: we couldn't sleep with all this noise so we came out to see what was going on…" Ron clarified quickly before Harry got himself into further trouble "So - what's so urgent you had to come find us?"

"Oh yeah!" Ginny exclaimed, quickly forgetting her irritation "Guess what! Oh, you'll _never_ guess…"

Ron and Harry look puzzled.

"Okay – I know I _really_ should not be telling you this - _Bad, Bad Ginny!_ - but anyway – I can't keep this to myself! Besides, I figured you needed all the help you can get…"

"Ginny, what are you on about!" Ron said, totally confused

"Hermione" she answered softly "she woke me up this morning and she told me a secret. A very _juicy_ little titbit. And she made me promise not to tell anyone, _especially_ you and Harry! But… I just can't _not _tell you!"

"So tell us already!" Ron urged impatiently

"I'm getting there, Ronald!" she reprimanded "So anyway – She told me about this dream she had – about you!" she pointed at Ron

"What?" Harry and Ron both said together

"Yeah – she dreamt that you kissed her! And she wasn't sure why, but in the dream, you both had cream all over your faces! That part was kind of odd but anyway…"

Harry looked over at Ron curiously –

"You didn't tell her?" he asked

"No, I figured you would…" Ron shrugged

"Tell me what?" Ginny questioned

"Uh – I sorta kissed Hermione" Ron said timidly

"WHAT!" Ginny exclaimed for half the common room to hear

"Shhhh!" Ron said

"Why didn't you tell me!" she addressed Ron and then turned to Harry "And why didn't you?" Harry shrugged.

"And – hang on – why didn't SHE say something?" Ginny continued, utterly baffled by this new information

"Ginny – calm down, okay? I kissed Hermione – that day we had the picnic - but then she fell into another trance and she lost all memory of what happened… so I couldn't tell you because she doesn't remember it, so it's kinda like it didn't happen…"

"Except that she _is_ remembering…" Harry jumped in "Her dream – Ginny said Hermione mentioned cream… don't you remember the cream, Ron?" Harry grinned

"Oh Merlin!" Ron exclaimed "does this mean what I _think_ it means?" a smile slowly spread across his face "She remembers!" he said joyously "And hang on – what else did she say? How does she feel about this _dream_?"

"Okay – First of all - I'm not even going to ask about the cream" Ginny grinned "Second of all – I think it's safe to say that Hermione _liked_ the dream and third of all - how are you going to explain all of this to her? She thinks it was just a dream!"

"But it wasn't a dream! It was a memory… And she did? Wow… I'm going to tell her… tonight… at the Ball" Ron said exuberantly, suddenly feeling rather confident

"You going to tell her… _everything_?" Harry asked disbelievingly

"Yes! I'm going to do it - I can't stand hiding how I feel about her anymore! She's driving me mental!"

"This is brilliant!" Ginny exclaimed, looking over at Harry, who could only grin at Ron's sudden enthusiasm.

"You do also realise what this means, right?" Harry said "If Hermione's getting her memories back, we should be able to figure out what Voldermort's up to…"

"Well – nothing's happened in a while… do you think he's still trying to…" Ron said

"I don't know – I haven't had a vision for a while either" Harry said "And so far, we haven't been able to figure out what the vision means…"

"Well – hopefully he's given up and gone home!" Ron said cheerfully – nothing could bring him down today – not even Voldermort!

"Yeah, hopefully" Harry said, although he knew better "Well, anyway – anybody else feeling hungry?"

"Yeah – I'm starving!' Ron exclaimed, rising from his spot on the top step "Let's go down to breakfast!"

"Okay" Ginny said, following suit "I'll go get Hermione" she said, and winked at her brother. Ron just stood there, grinning stupidly.

"Man, you've really got it bad!" Harry said, starting to descend the stairs "Well, are you coming?" he laughed

"Yeah, yeah – I'm comin'" Ron said, quickly waking up from his daze, and following Harry down to where the girls were waiting.

* * *

"Well – that was fast" Hermione said, somewhat sarcastically, watching him and Harry descend the stairs

"Wha'?" Ron asked, puzzled by her remark

"You – _helping Harry_" she said pointedly "it didn't take long, did it?"

Harry smiled at this but decided to bail Ron out –

"Yeah, well, we didn't need that much time, Hermione" Harry said quickly "but I was grateful for Ron's help"

"Oh – right" she said, looking a bit embarrassed, and proceeded to stroll ahead to the Great Hall. As she turned, Ron mouthed 'thanks Mate!' to Harry.

The rest of the day continued in a similar fashion – Ron grinning at every opportunity – to Hermione's irritation. Ginny and Harry speculated that Hermione was just feeling insecure because Ron was acting strange, and therefore, she'd over-react whenever Ron said something.

Eventually, at around lunch time, Ron had had enough – the four of them were sitting in the common room, around the fire, and Hermione's agitation came out in one biting comment too many…

"What is _with_ you Hermione?" Ron said abruptly "you've been grouchy all day!"

"What! I have not!" she responded angrily

Harry and Ginny soon realised that there was another huge row coming… the tension had been building and now it was about to explode…

"Every time I say something, you make some little comment…"

"What are you on about, Ronald!"

Ron looked furious "Don't call me _Ronald_! It's patronising!" he yelled "Look - I know there's something bugging you so why don't you just get it off your chest and stop biting my head off every chance you get"

"I AM NOT _patronising_ you! And I think you know what's bugging me Ron!" she yelled back

"What the bloody hell is that supposed to mean!"

"First, you keep secrets from me, and then last night, well… and _NOW_ you act mysterious all day, like you three are all in on some joke…" she said, her voice breaking slightly

"Hey – we're not…" Harry objected

"_What about _last night?" Ron asked

Hermione scowled "Nothing! Absolutely nothing!" she yelled "it doesn't matter! Anyway – I've got stuff to do. I'll see you later – at the Ball… _maybe_" she said and got up to leave

"Hermione, wait! You can't just leave now…" Ron objected

"Watch me _Ronald_" she said and quickly scurried away.


	10. Neverland

Chapter 10 – Neverland

Ron stood at the bottom of the stairs, glancing up at the girls' dormitories every few seconds… He was wearing the new dress robes Fred had bought for him the previous year – and he was pleased to find that they actually made him look quite handsome. And his absolute favourite thing about them: _they weren't maroon! _He started pacing up and down…

_What did she mean MAYBE…?_ He could feel the butterflies fluttering around in his stomach. _Is she coming or not? What if she doesn't come? What if she does? Then I have to tell her everything_… he thought nervously._ Where IS she! _

"Ron – relax" Harry said calmly (he had been watching Ron pace for the last ten minutes and was starting to get bored) "She'll be here, okay? Ginny will make sure of it… one way or another" he grinned

"I don't know Harry – she seemed pretty upset… Wait, what do you mean _one way or another_?" Ron asked curiously

"I _mean _that Ginny's worked too hard teaching us to dance to let Hermione miss this Ball! She'll work her magic and make sure Hermione gets here"

"Uh – I'd prefer her to be here by will, not by magic!" Ron said nervously, twirling the pink rose he had in his hand.

"Well, maybe she didn't have to resort to magic" Harry said, gesturing upwards -

Ron turned and watched in awe as Hermione descended the stairs (she was followed by Ginny – not that Ron noticed). She was wearing a pretty pink gown that accentuated her curves and made her look gorgeous. Her hair was cascading down her shoulders in what Ginny called a 'down-style'. She reached the bottom of the stairs –

"Is that for me?" she asked, looking into Ron's stunned eyes. He was still gawking at her when he realised she'd said something…

"What?"

"Uh - the rose…" she said, pointing at the rose he had in his hand.

He felt his cheeks burning and he smiled awkwardly "Yeah yeah – sorry" he said, taking her hand and giving her the rose "Um – this is to say sorry… for earlier…" he said, looking at his feet "I really thought you weren't gonna come tonight…"

"Oh, Ron" she said, completely melting "I'm sorry too – I shouldn't have yelled at you…"

"Yeah – me too" he grinned goofily "Anyway - should we get to this Ball or what?"

"Yes!" she said excitedly "Oh, and Ron…"

"Yeah…"

"How did you know?" she asked

"Know what?" he questioned

"The colour of my dress? The rose matches it perfectly…"

"Oh – I didn't…" he blushed again "I just picked one that reminds me of you…"

She smiled "Well, thank you for the rose"

"Sure" Ron beamed back

Ginny rolled her eyes "Are you two coming or what?" she said impatiently, heading for the door "you can thank each other later!" she said, winking at Harry.

As Ron, Hermione, Harry and Ginny entered the Great Hall, they were absolutely awe-struck. It was as if they'd stepped into another world – the hall had become a woodland paradise, with tiny fairies flitting around the different trees, leaving stardust in their wake and creating the perfect magical atmosphere. The enchanted ceiling had been bewitched to show a clear, night sky with a glistening full moon and stars that twinkled intermittently. There were candles, in the shape of Christmas trees, floating around in mid-air and enchanted Christmas decorations that were slowly attaching themselves to various trees around the hall.

"Wow" Hermione remarked, unable to look away from the heavenly scene set before them. For once in her life, she was lost for words.

"Yeah" was all Ron could mumble, as he, too, stood completely mesmerised and Harry was rendered utterly speechless – he had never seen anything like this in his entire life.

"C'mon, let's find a table" Ginny said eventually, walking towards the other end of the hall. There were little round tables scattered all over the hall, just big enough to seat eight people. Harry spotted Seamus and Parvati sitting at one of them and led the others in their direction.

"Hey guys – can we join you?" He asked

"Sure" Seamus said happily "we're just waiting for two others…" he seemed to be scanning the hall "ah, here they come now…" He got up and began gesturing "Neville – over here!"

The others turned around to see Neville approaching, with none other than Padma Patil on his arm! Ron could not help grinning to himself and wondering if the two of them had been set up, it had _Parvati_ and _Seamus_ written all over it!

The memories came flooding back all over again - Ron remembered all too well how disastrous the last Ball had been, partly because he'd been a total pratt to everyone, including Padma. And it was all because Viktor had made him realise that he wanted something he could not have – Hermione. _Well, tonight is different,_ he thought, _tonight I'm going to make up for everything that happened last time_.

"Hi Neville, Padma" Ron greeted

"Oh – hi Ron" Neville responded nervously. Padma just grinned – she'd obviously not forgotten her date with Ron at the last Ball either "If I recall correctly, you still owe me a dance Ron Weasley"

_Well, at least she wasn't still mad!_

"Uh sure, Padma" Ron said anxiously "it would be my pleasure" he glanced over at Hermione who did not look impressed.

"Well – sit down, girls" Seamus said, pulling out chairs for them

"Thank you Seamus" Hermione said quickly, glaring at Ron. She immediately sat down and started chatting to Parvati.

Once everyone was seated, the candles were suddenly extinguished, and the hall was plunged into darkness. There was a collective gasp and everybody froze in their seats. Immediately, people began whispering frantically _What should we do? Is this supposed to happen?_

"Shhhh" Hermione said firmly "listen…"

The hall was completely silent, except for a faint humming sound. The sound was drawing closer and closer, getting louder and louder, until finally there was a deafening blast as a thousand fireworks exploded above them. It was spectacular – there were flying dragons, galloping hippogriffs and spinning Christmas trees, to name a few, all in the most striking colours. This display continued for several minutes until finally everything collided with one mighty BANG! and exploded into a million falling stars. After a few stunned seconds, there was a resounding applause for the breathtaking display and with that, the candles were re-ignited and Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall suddenly appeared on the stage, which had been charmed to make it seem like they were floating on a cloud of mist.

"Welcome, Seventh-years, to your Farewell Ball" Professor McGonagall began – the whole hall erupted with cheers – Professor Dumbledore continued "As you can see – our theme for tonight is Neverland. Now – it might seem strange to you that we would pick such a theme, a theme that suggests that children should never grow up – especially for young witches and wizards about to leave their childish lives behind them to embark on new adult adventures… Well – the reasoning behind it is this: a good witch or wizard must _always_ remain young at heart – for it is when we are young that we are open to learning, and we are never too old to learn something new! Further more, nothing ages a witch or wizard faster than forgetting the carefree days their youth. So, do not be afraid, young ones – in these dark times – to laugh - for laughter has healing powers even I cannot begin to comprehend; to dance – wildly; to be brave, as only young witches and wizards can be; to persevere in all you endeavour and most importantly – to love – passionately and deeply – for the power of love is the greatest of all, and will see you through when you think you cannot go on. So, remember that while we must all grow up eventually, that does not mean we must grow old…" he said, with a twinkle in his eye "And now – I would like to propose a toast…" he raised his goblet and gestured for everyone to stand and do the same (goblets of sparkling Pumpkin Juice had suddenly appeared on all the tables) "To the class of 2005… Farewell, and best of luck!" he concluded, to which the students all clinked goblets and responded with a resounding "Cheers!"

"And now, let the party begin!" Professor McGonagall exclaimed and with a wave of her wand, scrumptious food appeared on all the tables and the band, which had been playing soft background music up until now, started pumping out the dance music…

"Brilliant!" exclaimed Ron, at the sight of all the food, and began piling all kinds of tasty treats onto his plate. Ginny nudged him with her elbow "Manners!" she whispered, looking intently at Hermione

"Oh right" he said sheepishly, watching Hermione daintily picking out various choices.

_Damn, she's beautiful_! He thought, forgetting about his food altogether.

"What?" she asked, catching him staring at her.

"Uh – nothing" he said quickly, and turned his attention back to his plate. Hermione shot Harry a puzzled look but Harry simply shrugged.

"So, what do you say to a dance, Harry?" Ginny said suddenly.

"What now?" Harry asked, looking uncomfortable "But no-one else is…"

She kicked him from under the table.

"Ouch! Uh… I mean… sure" he said, trying to rub his ankle inconspicuously. He got up from the table and anxiously led Ginny over to the dance floor. They began to dance and much to Harry's relief, people soon followed their example and came to join in.

"Did you have to kick me?" He asked angrily

"Sorry Love, but you wouldn't take the hint" Ginny replied

"The hint?"

Ginny looked at him agitatedly "Harry, if you haven't noticed, my brother and Hermione seriously need some help getting together – I don't know why they're so ridiculously clueless when it come to each other but if someone doesn't do something soon, they'll never get it together!"

"And you figure you're the person that needs to do something…" Harry grinned

"Of course"

"Maybe you should just leave them to sort it out, Gin. I'm almost certain they're not as clueless as they'd have everyone believe…"

"Well, let's see then… think Ron will take the hint and ask her to dance?"

Harry looked over at their table… Ron was still stuffing his face, completely oblivious…

"Mmm, okay, so maybe you're right" Harry said "but the night's not over yet…"

Ron looked anxiously over at Hermione – he just couldn't stop staring at her – she looked amazing! He craved to be closer to her, to run his fingers through her soft hair and feel her sweet lips upon his own – but something kept him bound to his chair. He knew the moment that he had been waiting for was drawing near, and he could feel the butterflies starting up again. _Ask her to dance_! A voice inside his head commanded _Just ask!_ But before he could say anything, his thoughts were interrupted…

"Ron?" It was Padma.

"Yeah" he said, suddenly aware of everyone around him

"Uh, would you like to dance? Neville said he doesn't mind since he doesn't know how…"

Hermione looked up from her conversation with Parvati to hear his response…

"Uh… Sure" he replied cautiously. _One dance couldn't hurt. Besides, I owe her one,_ He reasoned and even though deep down he knew he was just procrastinating, he got up and led Padma to the dance floor anyway. Hermione looked like a kettle about to boil –

Ginny and Harry returned to the table just as Parvati and Seamus were getting up to join everyone else on the dance floor.

"Well – so much for that plan!" Ginny was saying to Harry, but before they could even sit down Hermione interrupted them -

"Oooh – how DARE she!" she fumed "First, she makes a complete fool of herself flirting with him, and now she's stealing my dance partner! I mean, he is _my_ date after all!"

"I think you can handle this one, Harry" Ginny said, winking at him "Um, Neville – would you like to dance?"

"Uh – I can't really…" Neville said awkwardly

"No problem! There's nothing to it – I'll show you, C'mon ..." she said firmly, practically dragging him onto the dance floor.

"Hermione – calm down" Harry said, after Ginny and Neville had left

"But look at them!" she raged "She's totally flirting with him!"

"They're just dancing, Hermione. Besides, what do you care anyway?" his eyes danced mischievously

"I care because… Ron's _MY _date! And… she's got no right to hog him all night! And to leave Neville all alone like that, that's just not right either…"

Harry grinned at Hermione's excuses "So what are you going to do about it then?"

An evil grin suddenly spread across Hermione's face –

"C'mon…"

"What?"

"Will you dance with me Harry Potter?" she asked, getting up from the table

"It's a slow song, Hermione" Harry said cautiously "You sure you wouldn't rather…"

Hermione glared at him impatiently.

"Okay, Okay" he said surrendering and he led her out onto the dance floor, just a few feet away from where Ron and Padma were dancing. He and Hermione started swaying to the music – she put her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes. After a few minutes, she moved her fingers to his neck and started playing with his hair.

"Hermione, what are you doing?" Harry asked nervously

"Just go with it" she said, running her hand up and down his back

"Are you _kidding_!" Harry exclaimed tensely "Ron will punch my lights out! And Ginny, well…"

"Well, let's just see it they notice…" Hermione said, not budging an inch

"Hermione – this is insane!" he said pulling away from her "Just go over there and…" but he didn't need to complete his sentence because Ron was already making his way over to them -

"Great! Now look what you've done!"

"Mind if I cut in?" Ron glared menacingly at Harry "I believe my sister's over _there_…"

"Right, I'll be going then!" Harry said anxiously, and quickly fled to find Ginny.

"Oh, nice one Ron" Hermione said, although she was almost smiling as she said it

"Well – do you want to explain what you two were doing exactly?"

"We were dancing, Ron"

"_Dancing_! You call coming onto my sister's boyfriend _dancing_!"

"Oh, stop over-reacting Ron Weasley. We weren't doing anything that you and Padma weren't doing over there!" she said accusingly

"What? We _weren't_…" Ron was lost for words - _How could she think that I would ever…_ !

"Look, Hermione, this is ridiculous! Why are you so upset over something so pointless?"

"I'm not upset!" she said defensively "Just dance with me, okay!"

Ron was taken aback "What?"

"Look – I don't want to argue, okay? And since we're already here on the dance floor, would you like to dance?" she looked at him apprehensively

Ron grinned at the thought of Hermione asking him to dance "Yeah sure" he smiled and drew her closer into his arms. They swayed slowly to the soft music – it was so enchanting it felt as if they were floating above the mist-covered dance floor.

"I didn't know you could dance" Hermione said softly in his ear "I mean, before I saw you with Padma"

"I asked Ginny to teach me" Ron whispered back "So I could dance with _you_"

She looked up into his eyes, and then reached up to give him a kiss on the cheek. Ron felt his ears going red…

"I'm sorry" Hermione said apologetically "I didn't mean to accuse you of… well, anyway, I'm sorry."

"You don't need to apologise, Hermione, I over-reacted too… I seem to do that a lot around you" he grinned shyly. She rested her head on his shoulder. Ron felt his heart start pounding inside his chest…

"So, um, do you feel like going for a walk or something? There's still something I need to tell you" he said nervously

"I know – you need to tell me what you've been keeping from me all this time…"

"Yeah – so can we go?"

"Yeah" she smiled. They left the dance floor and headed for what they thought was the exit, but they just ended up going deeper and deeper into the 'forest'...

"Uh – are you sure we're still in the Great Hall?" Ron asked uncertainly a short while later.

"Yes – it's just been bewitched to look like a forest" Hermione replied, as they walked further and further into the trees. There were little fairies flying around lighting up the pathway as they walked. Eventually, they came to a little clearing among the trees, which was clearly illuminated by the glistening moon. There was a tiny bench situated right in the middle of it, which seemed to be inviting them closer.

"Well – I suppose you could call this a walk, since there's a moon and everything" Hermione said, looking up.

"Yeah … shall we sit over there for a while?" Ron said, gesturing towards the bench

"Sure" Hermione said, walking over to the bench and sitting down. Ron reluctantly sat beside her.

"So…" Hermione said, looking at him expectantly

"So… I don't really know where to start" Ron started fidgeting "Uh – okay… I have a confession…" he said, turning to face her "You remember the fight we had earlier today?"

"Of course"

"Well, you know you said something about the three of us being in on a secret? Well, that was kinda true"

"Okay…"

"See, Ginny kinda told me, and Harry, about your dream…"

"She WHAT!" Hermione exclaimed, turning red "I specifically told her not to!"

"Hermione, please don't get mad, please just listen to me… I'm glad she told me because if she didn't, we wouldn't know that you're getting your memory back…"

"What? I don't understand… What does my memory have to do with that dream?" Hermione looked at him, confused

"It wasn't a dream…"

"What do you mean it wasn't a dream?" Hermione asked, starting to feel a bit uncomfortable

Ron drew a deep breath - _Here goes!_

"It really happened"

"What? But that's impossible! In the dream… You… you kissed me…" she looked down at her feet

"Hermione…" He gently lifted her chin with his hand so he could look into her eyes "I really kissed you"

"But…"

"But, you don't remember" he sighed "You fell into a trance right after it happened and completely forgot everything we did that day…"

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why'd you kiss me?" she looked at him in anticipation

"Uhh…" Ron felt his insides twist into an anxious knot "That's a slightly longer story…"

"Tell me…"

_Because your lips are delicious… because I think you're gorgeous… because you drive me absolutely crazy..._ The reasons were endless… but they all boiled down to the same thing - _Because I love you_…

Ron took Hermione's hand "I guess I…" he began

"Well, well, well – isn't this cute? The Mudblood and the Weasel – _getting it on_" a voice emanated from the shadows…

"Malfoy" Ron said, getting up from the bench and walking over to him

"Ron, don't" Hermione pleaded

"C'mon, loverboy, let's see what you got" Malfoy taunted

Ron swung at him but Malfoy was too quick and ducked out of the way. Ron's fist connected with a tree.

"Ooh – that must've hurt!" Malfoy laughed wickedly. Ron didn't care about the pain coursing through his hand, all he felt was the anger rising up inside of him. He strode forwards –

"You!" he yelled "you're behind all of it! The book in the library… the trances…"

Malfoy sniggered "Yes, I planted that stupid book, but alas, I cannot take all the credit for the trances…"

"Are you saying what I think you're saying?" Ron yelled "that it _is_ Voldermort who's doing all of this?"

"Oh come on Weasley – do you think I'd be that stupid? Reveal all my little secrets to _you_, of all people?" Malfoy taunted

Ron could not bear it anymore – Malfoy was the reason his beloved Hermione was going through all of this! He strode towards Malfoy and swung again – this time connecting with his face, and sending Malfoy stumbling backwards.

"Get up, you coward!" Ron yelled "It's about time I laid into you for all the times you've called Hermione names! Now tell me what I want to know!"

Malfoy just lay there, clutching his nose.

"Ah _sweet_" Malfoy smirked "Sticking up for your girlfriend. Just a thought though: She's been awfully quiet during our little fight, don't you think? You might want to check she's okay"

"What?"

"Well – have a look for yourself" he pointed over to where Hermione had been sitting.

"Hermione!" Ron ran over to her. Her body lay lifeless on the bench.

"What's wrong with her Malfoy!" he shouted

Malfoy laughed "Uh – it looks like another trance to me…"

"You _know_, Malfoy! I know you know what's going on here!"

"Sorry – I've done what I was supposed to do here – now I have to get going" he said and quickly sprinted off deeper into the forest before Ron could catch him.


	11. Mister Malfoy

**Chapter 11 – _Mister_ Malfoy **

Ron came running out of the woods, carrying Hermione in his arms. "Harry! Ginny! _Someone_ – Help me!" Ron yelled, looking around. But he soon realised that something wasn't quite right. All the lights had come back on and there was a small crowd gathering around someone, or something, in the centre of the dance floor. Then it suddenly dawned on him what was going on… _Harry_!

He pushed his way through the concerned onlookers, still carrying Hermione in his arms, until he finally reached the centre, where he set Hermione down beside Harry, who was obviously having another one of his visions.

"Ron!" Ginny exclaimed, throwing her arms around her brother "Harry… he's…"

"I know" he said hesitantly and gestured towards Hermione "Look"

"Oh no! This can't be happening again!" Ginny squealed "What should we do?"

Ron got up and quickly scanned the crowd "Seamus!" he called, summoning him "can you find Dumbledore? Quick…"

"No need Mr Weasley – I'm already here" Dumbledore's voice thundered over the anxious whispers. Everyone quickly turned their attention to Dumbledore, who was now wading his way through the gathering.

"Mr Weasley – can you tell me briefly what happened?"

"Yes Sir… Hermione and I went for a walk into those woods over there" he pointed "and then Malfoy pitched up and started saying all this stuff about how he planted the book in the library but he was quite happy to let me know it wasn't him behind the trances…" Ron paused, eyeing his fellow classmates nervously and lowered his voice slightly "He implied that it was _Voldermort_ who was behind Hermione's trances…" Ron paused again as the crowd around him gasped in disbelief "Then we got into a fight and he told me to look over at Hermione… and I found her like this!" Ron was rambling but Dumbledore was listening intently.

"Mmmm… and then what happened?"

"Well – Malfoy said something about 'doing what he was sent to do' or something and then he ran off deeper into the woods!"

"Really…" Dumbledore said pensively. And then he rose suddenly, pointed his wand at the trees and chanted "_Divulgio_!"

The whole forest around the hall began to dissolve until all that was left was a sort of fairy dust, which lingered in the air for a moment before disappearing altogether. And then suddenly - THUD! A rather stunned Malfoy, who had speedily been running deeper and deeper into the 'forest', suddenly collided with the cold, hard West wall of the Great Hall. Although the forest had been bewitched to seem much bigger than the Great Hall, it suddenly became quite amusing at how long Malfoy must have been running for, only to land up a few metres away from everybody else. And then to crash into a wall! It wasn't long before loud bursts of laughter erupted from the spectators.

"Go Malfoy!" someone scoffed

"_Brilliant_ Malfoy! I didn't know you were providing the entertainment for tonight!"

Even Ron, who up until now had been worried sick, could not help laughing and he secretly thought to himself how Harry and Hermione would've loved to be there to witness this momentous event – Malfoy, finally getting what he deserved! This thought spurred him into action – he quickly strode over to where Malfoy lay groaning but Dumbledore got there first. By this stage, Professor McGonagall had started rounding up the majority of the seventh-years, telling them that the Ball was over and they should return to the safety of their dormitories until further instruction. She allowed Ginny and Ron to remain behind - Ginny stayed with Harry and Hermione, while Ron watched eagerly as Dumbledore began to interrogate Malfoy.

"_Sit up_, Mr Malfoy" Dumbledore ordered sternly

While Malfoy never usually did what he was told, there was something in Dumbledore's voice that frightened him just enough to obey the instruction. Ron had never seen Dumbledore so angry, and he felt a bit unsettled himself.

"Now – Tell me exactly what is going on here" Dumbledore continued in the same gruff manner

"I will not!" Malfoy said defiantly

"You _will_ not?" Dumbledore thundered, taking out his wand and aiming it at Malfoy's throat.

"I mean, I can't" he said slightly more timidly. Dumbledore glared at him.

"_Mister_ Malfoy, my patience with you is growing thin. For years, you have disregarded our rules; been nothing but arrogant and rude to your superiors and your peers; and although we've always suspected your allegiance to Voldermort, we've never been able to prove it. If it was not for your father's generous contributions to this school, and the minister for magic's insistence that we have you here, I would personally have removed you from this school years ago!"

Ron stood in absolute amazement at Dumbledore's shocking words – he had never seen Dumbledore lose his cool like that- had Dumbledore finally had enough? Ginny had also made her way over to them now, completely mesmerised by Dumbledore's rage and curious about what would happen next.

"Now - " Dumbledore continued firmly "_Must I_ go and get some Veritaserum or are you going to tell me the truth right now?" he still had his wand pointed at Malfoy's neck.

Malfoy squirmed uncomfortably. He knew that if he told Dumbledore anything, Voldermort would surely have his head on a platter!

"Bring on the truth potion!" he spat. At least, that way, he could tell Voldermort he'd been forced to tell. They had tied him down and forced the Veritaserum down his throat! Yes, that's what he'd say.

"Professor?" a weak voice drifted through the air.

"Harry!" Ginny shrieked and ran over to him. Dumbledore and Ron turned to see Harry sitting up.

"Need to speak… Dumbledore" he mumbled, stumbling to his feet and rubbing his head "My glasses…"

"Here" Ginny quickly gave them to Harry.

"Thanks" he said, looking around hesitantly, before finally finding what he was after "Professor Dumbledore!" he yelled, quickly running up to him.

"Harry – are you quite alright?" Dumbledore said, his demeanour suddenly quite different.

"Yes, I'm fine! But Professor – Hermione! I know! My vision – I saw!" he exclaimed excitedly

"Harry – calm down" Dumbledore instructed "Tell me slowly"

"Voldermort. I know where he's keeping Hermione!" he said triumphantly but then paused "the only thing is – I don't know how to get there…"

"Ah…" said Dumbledore, turning back to Malfoy "Well, perhaps Mr Malfoy can help us out there…"

Malfoy just smirked.

"Ron, Ginny" Dumbledore said "Please go and fetch Professor Snape – he's still in the dungeon, I believe. And tell him to bring some Veritaserum with him"

"But Sir…" Ron objected

"Mr Weasley – I assure you Miss Granger is not going anywhere. Harry and I are here to watch over her. And I do not feel it is safe to send your sister off into the castle alone – so please – _go_!"

"Yes Sir" he replied quickly and the two of them hastily scuttled off to the dungeon.

"_Stupefy_!" Dumbledore yelled suddenly and Malfoy instantly fell into a deep sleep. Harry raised his eyebrows in questioning – "Professor?"

"Harry" Dumbledore continued earnestly "there's something I must to tell you" he said "and I do not want Mr Malfoy to overhear our conversation"

"Okay" Harry said, an ominous feeling rising inside his chest.

"Harry – I can't tell you how I know it but there is something about tonight – I can feel it. You must go and fight Voldermort, Harry, tonight."

"I know Professor"

"No, Harry – I don't think you quite understand. I think tonight is _THE_ night. After tonight, if you succeed, the war could be over"

"You mean…"

"Yes, tonight is the night you and Voldermort must go up against each other, Harry – and only one of you can win"

"Yes, I know the Prophecy Professor…" Harry said calmly

"You must understand Harry - I cannot go with you. This is something you have to face alone – you must fight him, _alone_"

"I understand Professor"

"There's one more thing, Harry – Ron cannot go with you either. He will want to – and he will try to – but it is absolutely imperative that he stays behind"

"But I don't understand Professor, I thought you said he was the only one who could bring Hermione back…"

"Yes Harry, but you see, true love transcends the physical – his love for Hermione is strong enough to save her, but not in the way he thinks. He needs to stay here, with her, so that when Hermione's soul is set free again, his love can summon it back to where it belongs. He cannot do that if he is helping to fight Voldermort with you – and I don't want to imagine what will happen to Hermione's soul then! She will be lost, forever!"

"But how? Ron will never let me go without him…"

"Don't worry about that Harry. I will take care of everything. Now, when I said you must go alone, I did not mean totally alone. I will send the Order after you, to fight the Death Eaters, but that is all they can do for you Harry. You alone must fight Voldermort. If you defeat him, Harry, the war will be over and Hermione will be set free. If you fail, however… well, I'm sure you know the cost. Are you ready, Harry?"

"I was born ready!" Harry exclaimed "I've been waiting for this moment for a long time, Sir. It's time Voldermort paid… for my parents… for Sirius… It's time!" Harry declared angrily

Dumbledore knew that Harry was still harbouring feelings of anger and resentment over Sirius's death – and while he realised it wasn't good for Harry to lose control, he also knew that that very anger might just be what Harry needed to encourage him not to give up in his fight against Voldermort. Yes, the time had come – Harry was ready.

"Good. Now…" Dumbledore pointed his wand back at Malfoy "_Enervate_!"

Malfoy came back to life abruptly "Where am… _Oh_" he looked at Dumbledore who was still towering over him. Dumbledore was staring at him intensely and Harry suddenly clicked - Dumbledore didn't need Veritaserum to find out what Malfoy was hiding – he was a _Legimens_ - he could read Malfoy's thoughts!

"Professor – Ron, and Ginny – you didn't actually send them to go fetch Veritaserum, did you?" Harry said, suddenly comprehending Dumbledore's plan "you just sent them on a wild goose chase to get rid of them…"

"Yes, I'm sorry, Harry - but they wouldn't understand why you have to go alone. Not straight away. It will be easier for you to leave without them here" he said, turning back to Malfoy. He pointed his wand at Malfoy but did not utter a word. Instead he closed his eyes and began to mumble something under his breath. Malfoy face contorted, as if in terrible pain, and Harry suddenly felt a bit sorry for him – he remembered exactly how he'd felt when he'd tried to stop Professor Snape from reading his mind during Occlumency lessons – it was torture.

"The more you fight, the worse it's going to be" he commented to Malfoy, before he even realised what he'd said.

Malfoy just snorted in rebellion and glared at Dumbledore "Is that the best you can do?" he taunted

Dumbledore straightened out and began to chant louder. Suddenly Malfoy cried out in anguish and his whole body twitched uncontrollably. Finally, Dumbledore stopped what he was doing and exclaimed "Aha! I suspected as much! Thank you, Mister Malfoy. I'm sorry I had to resort to this but we had no other choice – there's no time"

Malfoy just lay there, motionless, unable to speak. Harry looked at Dumbledore anxiously.

"Don't worry, Harry – he'll be alright, he's just in shock. I'll get Hagrid to see to him – we don't want him running off to warn Voldermort, now do we?"

Harry still looked unsure.

"Ah sweet, Potter's _worried _about me" Malfoy suddenly blurted out, although he still hadn't moved.

Harry suddenly felt a lot better "And to think I actually felt sorry for you, you git" he said angrily "but thanks – I feel a lot better now – knowing you got exactly what you deserved! And I can't wait to see what Voldermort does with you, once he finds out you betrayed him…"

"That's enough" Dumbledore intervened "Harry… it's a portkey. Malfoy's been using a portkey to travel back and forth from Voldermort's hideout"

"It won't work, you know – he's expecting you to come! He's expecting you to try and save the Mudblood!" Malfoy taunted.

"Yes, it _is_ likely that Voldermort will be expecting Harry. But he will not be expecting _you_, Mr Malfoy!"

"What?" Malfoy looked concerned

"You see, I figured Harry could use a bit of an advantage, since Voldermort has been one step ahead of us this whole time. So I took extra precautions. I've been brewing a potion of my own. And with a little help from Professor Snape's _Brew-fast _powder, I would say it's just about ready, and almost complete…" Dumbledore withdrew a small container from his robes and opened the lid – the aroma started wafting through the air "All except for one ingredient, that is" he said, looking at Malfoy expectantly.

"Urgh!" Malfoy blurted out "that's disgusting – what is it… Ouch!" Dumbledore had reached over and pulled a single blond hair from Malfoy's head "There we go! Potion complete." He stated calmly, winking at Harry. Malfoy looked on in horror as he, too, realised what the potion was.

"Polyjuice potion!" Harry blurted out, without thinking.

"Yes, Harry" Dumbledore's eyes twinkled "I believe you're familiar with it?"

Harry just nodded sheepishly, remembering the incident back in Second year that had left poor Hermione with the face and tail of a cat. You see, Polyjuice potion enabled its drinker to temporarily impersonate someone else, so long as something that belonged to that particular person, for example, a hair off their head, was added to the potion. Poor Hermione had unknowingly ended up with a cat's hair, and found out the hard way that it was not wise to mess around with potions, however harmless they may seem. Harry had not thought much about it before, but he realised now that Dumbledore probably knew about _all_ their little 'adventures' and he wondered why Dumbledore had never said anything about them…

"Harry" Dumbledore smiled, bringing him back to reality "You'll have one hour only but I think you know the drill" he winked at Harry and motioned for him to take the container.

"You want me to become Malfoy?" Harry asked slowly

"Yes Harry, don't you see, he'll never see it coming"

Harry grinned at this thought, and gave Malfoy one of his best smirks.

"C'mon, Harry, drink up… they'll be back soon" Dumbledore urged. Harry took a swig of the vile-smelling potion and resisted the urge to regurgitate it – it really made his stomach turn. But he soon forgot how terrible the potion tasted - he was sprouting blond hair all over his head! He screwed his face up in disgust – "I'm… I'm _Malfoy!_" he exclaimed, not liking the fact at all. Malfoy shot him a dirty look, but Harry could see the anxiousness creeping into Malfoy's eyes.

"Quick Harry, over here" Dumbledore gestured "The portkey is in the library – it's a book _called 'Evil Will Rise Again' _in the restricted section, under Dark Arts. It's in the 7th aisle on the left-hand side… Go now… you don't have much time"

"But Professor, I haven't told you where to send the Order…"

"No need Harry – Mr Malfoy helped in that area already…"

"So then you know… he's at…"

"_Godric's Hollow?_" Dumbledore completed "yes, I know, Harry. I don't think it is a mere co-incidence either. He chose that place, because it has special significance to you, Harry. So be careful"

"I will Professor" Harry said, realising suddenly that this could be the last time he might see Dumbledore, and he instinctively turned to give him a hug.

"Professor – please – tell Ginny I love her. She's everything to me… And Ron, and Hermione, please tell them…"

"Tell them yourself, Harry, when you return" Dumbledore smiled, not allowing him to think that this was goodbye "Now go – before it's too late! Good luck, Harry – I've done all I can to help – now the rest is up to you…"

Harry turned and quickly set off to the library, hoping against all hope that he would not run into Ron and Ginny on his way out.


	12. The Power of Love

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_**Disclaimers: **I do not own Harry Potter or any other character in this story, only the plot belongs to me! There's also one line right at the end which apparently comes from Star Trek so please don't sue me for using it - I did not make it up :)_

_**A/N:** Thank you to all my loyal readers (and especially reviewers!) for supporting this story - it really means a lot! I'm sad to say this is my final chapter but it is a long one & hopefully it will leave you all feeling satisfied! And please remember to leave me one last review! Thanks, Sunflowa :)_

* * *

**Chapter 12 – The Power of Love**

Ron sat beside Hermione's bed in the hospital wing – It had been decided that it would be the best place for her until she woke up completely. He sat and reflected on everything that had happened over the past few hours. He hadn't slept at all that night – he _couldn't_.

It had all happened so fast. One minute he was sitting with his beautiful Hermione on the moonlit bench in the enchanted forest, and the next, Dumbledore was telling him that Harry had gone off to fight Voldermort alone, and there was nothing he could do but sit and wait! Dumbledore had explained that he needed to stay behind for Hermione's sake, but that did nothing to ease his frustration at not being able to do something to help. How could he just sit here, while Harry was risking his life to save everyone? He turned it over and over in his mind until he thought he'd go insane. Harry was his best friend – and he knew Harry was strong and could face up to whatever Voldermort threw at him – but he couldn't help feeling like he was letting him down somehow by not being there –

"I can't take this!" Ginny exclaimed suddenly. Ron looked up from the spot he'd been staring at for the past half hour – he been so absorbed in his own disconcerting thoughts he'd completely forgotten about Ginny, who was sitting in the chair across from him. Ron knew that Ginny cared for Harry a great deal – they had always teased her about her obvious crush – but it suddenly dawned on him, upon seeing the look on her face, that it was more than just a crush – he suddenly realised that she might actually _love_ Harry – the same way he loved Hermione – and it occurred to him then that she needed her brother's comfort…

"He'll be okay Gin" he tried to sound convincing

"Ron" her voice broke suddenly "I can't…" A tear rolled down her cheek and Ron walked over to her and enveloped her in a hug "Shhh" he soothed as Ginny broke down "There's no point in thinking the worst, okay? We don't know anything yet. We have to think positive…"

"But…" Ginny sobbed "I… didn't… even… get to say… good… bye. What if… ?"

"No What-ifs, okay? Besides, Harry knows you care about him – you don't have to tell him for him to know"

"I… just... can't stand this… waiting! I feel… so… helpless!"

"So do I, Gin. I would give anything to be there, helping my best friend win this war and save Hermione. But we can't be there, okay? And there's no point in driving ourselves crazy thinking about all the possibilities…"

"Well – I need to get out of here for a while" Ginny said, suddenly pulling away from him "Just sitting here - doing nothing - IS going to drive me crazy!"

"But Gin, you can't leave – it's not safe"

"Ron – I just meant a walk… around the castle or something… _please_… I can't stay here anymore"

She flashed him one of those 'I dare you to stop me' looks that he knew only too well from the Weasley women and he knew it was pointless arguing with her – Ginny was going to do whatever she wanted to do, regardless of what he had to say about it –

"Okay – but if you're not back in half an hour I'm coming to look for you!" he conceded

"Fine" Ginny said, heading for the door "Oh, and Ron – Thanks…for before…I know you're right…"

"Sure" he smiled "What are older brothers for, right?"

She smiled appreciatively and swiftly turned and exited the room.

Ron slowly turned back to Hermione. He sat back down beside her and took her hand in his. It was so cold. He softly pressed his lips against her palm, hoping to breathe some warmth into her icy skin.

"I miss you" he said quietly "I know it's only been a few hours but I miss you already. Hermione – I've got so much to tell you…" he looked at her expressionless face and felt a sudden well of emotion rising up inside of him - "Hermione, the truth is I'm a bloody coward! I've been in love with you for so many years now and I've never had the guts to tell you! You asked me why I kissed you – well, I couldn't _not_ kiss you" the words just seemed to be tumbling out - there was no stopping it now – the years of pent up passion could not be denied any longer "I've been wanting to kiss you ever since that stupid Yule Ball back in Fourth year! I didn't realise it then but I was such a prat to you that night because I was insanely jealous of Viktor… because he had you, and I didn't... and things just got worse from there. After that night, the more time I spent with you, the more I fell in love with you! And it was a mixture of agony and heaven to be near you. It was agony because I couldn't tell you how I felt – I couldn't have you, Hermione. But I'm telling you now – Hermione Granger – I love you. Deeply. Passionately. _So_ much…" a single tear escaped his eye and fell onto her wrist. He looked at her unchanging expression again and wondered whether she could hear anything he was saying. "Bloody brilliant, I am. Telling you all this now, when it's too bloody late" he mumbled angrily.

He leaned over and kissed her cheek "Please, Hermione" he whispered desperately "come back to me – don't leave me here to live without you…" another tear trickled down his cheek and fell onto Hermione's lips. He brushed it softly away, gently touching her lips with his fingers. An overwhelming wave of exhaustion suddenly washed over him and he rested his head on the side of her bed, still holding her hand and shut his eyes for a second… _I'll just rest for a minute,_ he thought_, just for a second…_

* * *

Ron wasn't exactly sure what, but something jolted him awake several hours later… he felt a bit dazed but he was certain he had felt something… _something_…

And then suddenly the memory came flooding back… his hand. Someone had squeezed his hand!

"Hermione!" he cried. He got up to look at her. Her eyelids were fluttering, as if she might open her eyes at any second. Ron felt his heart jump.

"Hermione! Open your eyes! I'm here…" he exclaimed, squeezing her hand gently.

Then he noticed Ginny – she'd fallen asleep in the chair opposite him, but was stirring now, probably because of his yelling.

"Ron?" Ginny said, sleepily lifting her head "Is that you?"

"Ginny! I think Hermione's waking up…" His words quickly jolted her out of her stupor

"What?" she shrieked "That means…"

"Wait… we don't know yet… _Hermione_" he said urgently

Hermione's eyes flew open suddenly and she gasped for breath, as if suddenly being resuscitated.

"Ron! Oh Ron!" she flung her arms around him "It was so _horrible_!"

He held her close, never wanting to let go. "Shhh" he soothed "you're safe now". There were a million thoughts racing through his brain, questions all begging to be answered but he found himself unable to speak – the words could simply not get past the lump in his throat, which threatened to set free the waves of tears that were welling up behind his eyes. He hugged her even tighter.

Finally Ginny spoke -

"Hermione – I have to know" she said despondently "Harry… is he…?"

Hermione broke away from Ron to look at Ginny "It was horrific, Gin – I've never seen such terrible things…" she looked like she was holding back tears "There was so much blood…" she looked down despondently "And Tonks and Kingsley…" her voice broke

"So then you're saying… he's dead" Ginny forced the words out

"Oh… No" Hermione said quickly "I didn't mean Harry. Harry's plan worked – he tricked Voldermort into thinking he was Malfoy – and Voldermort wasn't fooled for long, but it gave Harry the edge he needed. The battle seemed to last for hours though – I thought at one point it was hopeless – people were getting cursed left, right and centre – and it didn't seem like either one of them, Harry, _or Voldermort_, were making any progress! I was beginning to think that neither one could _ever_ win – but somehow, towards the end, it was as if Harry suddenly got a boost of inspiration and strength and that was it – he took Voldermort out just like that. I've never seen anything like it"

"What? So then it's all over?" Ginny questioned disbelievingly "He's alive?"

"Yes – Harry's alive" Hermione smiled weakly "he got quite badly injured but they took him straight to St. Mungo's, along with all the other injured people – he should be fine…"

"I'm going!" Ginny said triumphantly, wiping away her tears of joy "I have to see him! I don't care how I get there but I'm going – _right now_" she said emphatically and stormed straight out of the room.

Despite all the rules they knew she'd be breaking, neither Ron nor Hermione tried to stop her – a few rules seemed so pointless now in the light of everything that had happened over the past few hours.

"Pretty unbelievable, isn't it?" Hermione said, turning to Ron "It's all over. The war. Voldermort. The trances. Harry's going to okay…" but before she could continue Ron had wrapped her up in another hug –

"I was more worried about _you_" he said earnestly "I thought I might lose you, for good this time"

"Ron, I'm okay now – I promise – you can let me go" she grinned

"I'm never letting you go again" he said, refusing to pull away

"But Ron… I need to breathe" she said eventually

He laughed "Okay – well, maybe occasionally so you can breathe"

"Very funny Mr Weasley"

"So, are you going to tell me what happened…to you?" he ventured finally. He saw the pain in her eyes and wondered if he'd asked the right question.

"Eventually" she replied, looking down "but right now, all I really want to do is forget" she looked up and caught his caring gaze "What happened tonight, none of it seems that important right now – all that really matters is that I'm back here, with you…" she smiled

Ron looked at her earnestly. He took her hand and stared into her eyes "Hermione, there's something I need to tell you…" he looked down at his feet "I've waited too long and now that I have you back…" he blushed slightly as the words resounded inside his head - 'now that I have you back…' _Did he have her at all?_ - "…I'm not going to waste any more time…" he continued

Hermione grinned at his awkwardness "Ron – that's what I'm trying to tell you…" she said simply "I already know"

"No, you don't know" he said expressively "You think you do but…"

"Ron" she said, taking his hand "_I know_". She looked into his puzzled eyes, willing him to understand what she was saying. Ron felt the heat from her touch creeping up inside him.

"What do you mean, _you know_?" he asked cautiously

"I heard you before" she said softly "I heard what you said about the Ball, and Viktor, and well, all of it"

Ron felt his ears starting to burn and quickly pulled away, and studied his shoes.

"But how?" he stammered, not quite sure what to say next.

"I don't know how but Ron…" she said, looking at him intently "_Ron_" she said, touching her hand to his chin and forcing him to look at her "Quite frankly I don't care _how_ it happened, Ron, all I really care about is that it did…"

"Hermione" he said, not quite registering what she had said "I was rambling before… I mean, I didn't know if…" he paused "you looked so lifeless and I was so worried and…"

Hermione sighed. She leaned forward and pulled Ron's head closer to her own and whispered "Ron – Shut up!" she grinned. And before Ron knew what was happening, she'd pulled him even closer into a deep embrace, and kissed him daringly on the lips. He stopped to look at her for a split-second but he didn't need a second invitation – he attacked her lips with his own and kissed her hungrily. The room started to spin and Ron felt his heart hammering so violently he thought his chest might explode. Hermione ran her fingers through his flame-red hair and sent shivers down his spine. They were totally swept up in each other for several minutes before Ron finally came up for air.

"Wow" Ron beamed "That was… _wow_" he said, completely dumbstruck. He looked at her questioningly.

"So… does this mean… ?" he ventured cautiously

"It _means_ I've been waiting for you to say those words to me ever since Fourth year, Ronald Weasley!" Hermione exclaimed "And when you do finally say them, I'm completely unconscious!" she grinned "And it _means_ Ron, that I…" she paused, starting to blush "that I… _love_ you".

Ron beamed. "You do?" he asked in disbelief.

"Yes, you ignorant prat! I only went with Viktor to that stupid Ball to make you jealous!"

Ron could hardly believe what he was hearing - "But you never said anything…" he stated simply.

"I guess I didn't want to risk anything that would jeopardise our friendship" she said calmly "in case you didn't feel the same way"

"Oh, Hermione" he said, touching her cheek "I've _always_ felt the same way – I just didn't always know it! Even back in Second, after you'd been petrified, I was so worried you weren't gonna wake up. But I didn't understand why I cared about you so much back then – you were just a friend, right? But it's so clear now, Hermione – you're so much more than a friend to me!" He sat down on her bed and enfolded her in another hug.

"Tell me again" she whispered close to his ear "tell me what you said before…while I was unconscious"

"Uh… okay" he grinned. He felt his cheeks turning red again but realised there wasn't any reason to feel embarrassed anymore – Hermione loved him back! He looked into her eyes and smiled "Hermione, I love you" he said earnestly "and I want you to be mine… and _only_ mine. Will you go out with me?"

"Oh Ron" she sighed "I've always been yours – you just didn't realise it! My heart's only ever belonged to one person – one tall, red-headed Weasley person" she grinned naughtily

"Right – so George then…" he teased.

Hermione smacked him playfully.

"You didn't answer my question" he said expectantly

"Come here" she said, and pulled him in for another passion-filled kiss. She grinned at him slyly.

Ron beamed "So, I'll take that as a yes then…" he said, before pulling her back into his arms, and kissing her vehemently.

* * *

And they were completely inseparable from then on out. That eventful day culminated in one enormous celebration as the entire magical world once again celebrated the demise of Voldermort. And although there were sacrifices and loss, for the most part, it was a day to rejoice. For good had triumphed over evil, once and for all.

After things had just about returned to normal, Hermione had told Ron about all the awful things she'd seen. She also told him about the pain Voldermort had tried to inflict on her, during her capture, but she remained strong through it all, knowing that her love for Ron Weasley would pull her through. It was then that Ron told her about what Dumbledore had said, about the power of true love, and he knew right then that they were meant to be together – it was their love that had saved them. It came out later that Harry said the same thing about Ginny – although Dumbledore had thought it would be Harry's strong feelings of anger that would spur him on, he hadn't realised that Harry's love was stronger than his hatred - it was his love for Ginny that had kept him going, kept encouraging him to fight, and to finally end the war.

There had been funerals for the people that had died that night – Tonks, Kingsley and a few other members of the Order – and although everyone was still sad and missed them terribly, there was the general feeling that a huge weight had been lifted, and that after the shock and grief of it all wore off, things were not just going to be okay, things were going to be much better.

And it wasn't long before everyone was back at the Burrow, enjoying a delicious Weasley breakfast. Fred and George were deeply engrossed in some important discussion regarding their joke shop; Bill had invited Fleur over to meet the family, and the two of them were being fussed over by Mrs Weasley; Charlie was debating 'the importance of Ministry reports' with Percy and Mr Weasley was desperately trying to get his youngest son's attention by talking about Quidditch…but to no avail – Ron was completely wrapped up in whatever Hermione was saying – something about _house elves_, was it? He grinned at her and wondered how he got so lucky (they were holding hands underneath the table to avoid the twins' taunting) - it had been a month since _that_ night and he'd been completely absorbed in her ever since. And although everything seemed to be back to normal, there was a sense of anticipation in the air –

"Where _is_ he?" Hermione questioned impatiently

"I don't know" Ron replied anxiously "You don't suppose Harry's managed to splinch himself, do you?"

Hermione looked at Ron anxiously.

Today was the day that Harry was to be released from St. Mungo's and everyone had excitedly gathered at the Burrow to welcome him home. Since there was no longer imminent danger for Harry, Dumbledore and Mr Weasley had agreed that Harry no longer needed to remain in the Dursleys' care and could stay with the Weasleys for as long as it took for more permanent arrangements to be made. The healers at St. Mungo's had insisted on Harry staying there for at least a month for his injuries to heal properly (he still had several broken ribs which had not fully healed) but they could not keep him locked down in bed all day – he was going stir-crazy! Eventually, after several of Harry's desperate pleas, they had agreed to let him take his Apparition Test right there at the hospital. He'd passed with flying colours and since it was all still a novelty, he had insisted on apparating to the Burrow for his welcome home celebration. He was to be expected any minute…

Ron and Hermione could barely hear themselves above the excited chatter emanating from the kitchen table. But before they could continue, there was a sudden crack and the room fell silent. Everyone turned to see what had happened, and then –

"Harry!" George exclaimed "Nice job Mate! We were starting to wonder if you'd splinched yourself somewhere!" But before Harry could respond, a certain redhead had come flying across the room and flung herself into Harry's arms…

"Ginny" Harry said, and hugged her tight "I missed you"

"Missed you too" she grinned

"Oh, get a grip you two" Fred chirped

"Yeah, it's not like you haven't seen each other every other day!" George added

Ron and Hermione soon entered the fray and Ginny finally let go of Harry to let him chat to his friends – Hermione immediately lent over and gave Harry a hug. After what they'd both experienced together, she knew they would always have a special bond of friendship…

"It's good to see you Hermione" Harry said eventually

"I owe you one" she whispered in his ear "you saved my life"

"Actually, I believe it was Ron who saved you" he winked at her, as she pulled away to look at him.

"Ron" Harry smiled and gave his best friend a hug. It was an emotional moment – finally being reunited with the ones he cared so much about – this is what he had fought for – and now he struggled to fight back the tears, which were threatening to fall any second now.

"It's good to be back, isn't it?" Hermione said "I mean, here at the Burrow…"

"You have no idea" Harry said, but before he could say anything else, Mrs Weasley had rushed in and pulled him into one huge embrace.

"_Now_ it's breakfast" she said cheerfully "this family's just not complete without you Harry" she grinned, and hurriedly swept him along to the table.

Everyone sat down again, and Ron looked around the room and smiled to himself –

"I'd like to propose a toast" he said suddenly, rising from his chair. Everyone turned their attention to him.

"To us, the Weasley clan" he beamed.

"Hear hear!" yelled Fred

"May we live long and prosper!" George interjected. Mrs Weasley shot them warning glares.

"And by that, I mean everyone here at this table" Ron continued "because every one of you is pretty much family anyway…"

He looked at Harry "To Harry – my best friend - for basically saving the world" he grinned "and for being the best mate a guy could ever have… welcome home!" Everyone started clinking their glasses but Ron wasn't quite finished… "And there's one more thing… to Hermione – for keeping me educated" he teased as she rolled her eyes at him "And for being the _best _girlfriend ever" he added, blushing slightly.

"So – here's to all of us finally being back at the Burrow together – Cheers!" he finished and raised his goblet.

"Cheers!" everyone responded and stood to do the same.

Ron had never felt so light-hearted in his life – everyone he cared about in the world was right here in this room – and they were all happy – and most of all, his heart's utmost desire was sitting right next to him, playing with his hand below the table and whispering tempting suggestions in his ear - what more could a guy ask for?

_The End _


End file.
